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1965 Map of Potato Butte

Name: 1965 Topographic Map of Potato Butte
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1968
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1968

About this map

The Wind River Indian Reservation landscape of the mid-1960s is defined by its complex drainage systems and isolated high ground, anchored by the prominent Potato Butte and the extensive Big Table Mountain. Water sources are the critical features in this arid environment, marked by numerous named springs such as Merrill Spring, Val Day Spring, and Rainwater Spring that fed the seasonal flows of Cottonwood Creek and Willow Creek.

Evidence of historical resource exploration appears with a Drill Hole near the Sweetwater Basin, while the southern portion of the quadrangle is bisected by the Hot Springs Co - Fremont Co boundary. The map captures a topography of deep draws and gulches, including Miners Gulch and Black Rock Draw, illustrating a territory where survival and land use were historically dictated by the location of reliable water and the traversable paths through the breaks.