1919 Map of Raynor Creek

About this map

The Chowchilla River winds through this central California landscape at a time when the boundaries between Mariposa, Merced, and Madera counties were still being clearly delineated. This 1919 edition reveals a topography defined by watercourses and political divisions rather than dense settlement. The confluence of several drainage systems, including Deadman Creek, Dutchman Creek, and Raynor Creek, illustrates the complex natural irrigation of the valley and foothills. Land surveyors like E.P. Davis and J.H. LeFeaver captured the area as it transitioned from open range to more formal county jurisdictions, noting the Boundary Line that marked these administrative shifts. The sparse distribution of labels suggests a period of early 20th-century development where the geography was primarily understood through its watersheds and the Mariposa Co Merced Co and Merced Co Madera Co border crossings.