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1903 Map of San Antonio

Name: 1903 Topographic Map of San Antonio
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1939
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1939

About this map

The San Gabriel Mountains dominate this high-altitude landscape where the San Andreas Rift Zone slices through the terrain, separating the mountain peaks from the Mojave Desert to the north. Surveyed at the turn of the century by W.T.Turner, the map reveals a rugged wilderness defined by steep canyons and prominent summits like San Antonio Peak and Telegraph Peak. The geography is bisected by the boundary line between Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties, cutting across the Swarthout Valley.

Evidence of early human activity is sparse but telling, marked by a single Mine near Vincent Gulch and a Reservoir in the southern reaches. This era represents a period of significant federal land designation, with the terrain split between the Angeles National Forest and the San Bernardino National Forest. From the Devils Backbone to the drainage of Lytle Creek, the map details a complex network of forks and gulches that would eventually become the primary recreation and water management corridors for the growing Southern California region.