Loading map...

1965 Map of Salmon Prairie

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

USGS Topo · Published 1968

About this map

The Swan River valley serves as a central corridor through this heavily forested portion of western Montana, where the Swan River State Forest and Flathead National Forest converge. During the mid-1960s, this area remained largely defined by its natural topography and resource management infrastructure, centered around the Salmon Prairie settlement and the nearby State Forest Hdqrs. The map reveals a landscape managed for timber and recreation, evidenced by the Swan Lake Campground and several Gravel Pits tucked near the riverbanks.

Water is the defining feature of the terrain, with numerous drainage systems like Squeezer Meadow Creek, Lion Creek, and Piper Creek feeding into the main river channel. High-altitude basins contain small water bodies such as Shay Lake and Van Lake, while meadows like Simmons Meadow and Alder Meadow Creek provide breaks in the dense canopy. The presence of several unnamed pack trails and a Jeep Trail indicates the early development of backcountry access before more modern road networks were established.