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1919 Map of Rocky Mountain National Park

Name: 1919 Topographic Map of Rocky Mountain National Park
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1940
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1940

About this map

The Continental Divide serves as the backbone for this 1919 study, where the peaks of the Medicine Bow Mountains meet the high alpine lakes of the Colorado Rockies. Before the era of heavy modern tourism, the landscape is defined by remote outposts like Monarch P O and the small settlement of Estes Park. Mapping of this era highlights the essential transit routes through the high country, including the ancient Ute Trail and the crossing at Thunder Pass.

Evidence of early industrial activity and local infrastructure appears in the Fourth of July Mines and the Sleepy Hollow School south of the Monarch area. The Denver and Fraser railroad skirts the southwestern edge near Granby, providing a look at the region's transport network before the major highway expansions of the mid-20th century. Numerous ranger stations and shelters scattered across the Rocky Mountain National Park and surrounding Arapaho National Forest indicate the early management of these protected lands.