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1954 Map of Rice Lake

Name: 1954 Topographic Map of Rice Lake
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1955
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1955

About this map

Little Traverse Bay defines the southeastern edge of this mid-century Keweenaw Peninsula survey, where the cold waters of Lake Superior meet a landscape shaped by glacial hydrology. The interior is dominated by the sprawling Rice Lake and its smaller neighbor, Little Rice Lake, surrounded by a dense network of drainage including Giles Creek and the southern reaches of the Traverse River.

Evidence of local recreation and seasonal residency appears at Minnetonka Camp on the eastern shore of Rice Lake. The map illustrates a transitional wilderness at the border of Schoolcraft and Torch Lake townships, where older industrial traces like Sawmill Creek persist alongside the natural flow of the Trap Rock River. This topography reflects the rugged, water-dependent character of Houghton and Keweenaw counties before late-twentieth-century developments altered the local character.