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1948 Map of Salinas Peak

Name: 1948 Topographic Map of Salinas Peak
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1971
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1971

About this map

The White Sands Proving Ground and the Alamogordo Bombing Range dominate this post-war landscape, where military testing grounds overlap with remote ranching operations. The map documents a strictly controlled interior, marked by the California Institute of Technology Ordnance Reservation and extensive boundaries. Amidst the high-desert terrain, water is the primary driver of human presence, seen in the numerous family-named installations such as Cain Ranch Headquarters, Gilliland Ranch Headquarters, and Chavez Ranch.

Evidence of an older, extractive economy remains at the Salinas Mine near Salinas Peak, while the Bear Den Sch points to a time of settled community before the military reservations expanded. The geography is defined by deep cuts like Cottonwood Canyon and prominent landmarks like Silver Top Mountain and Ladybug Peak. This survey provides a rare view of the precarious balance between traditional high-country ranching and the dawn of the atomic age's military infrastructure.