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1953 Map of San Ysidro

Name: 1953 Topographic Map of San Ysidro
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1955
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1955

About this map

The south end of San Diego Bay and the international boundary define this landscape during a period of rapid mid-century growth. Massive Salt Evaporators dominate the marshy flats between Imperial Beach and Palm City, while the Tia Juana River winds through the southern valley toward the coast. Military installations including the Naval Auxiliary Air Station Ream Field and the Border Field Naval Reservation occupy significant portions of the shoreline.

Transit corridors like the Montgomery Freeway and the Arizona and Eastern RR link the residential neighborhoods of Chula Vista and San Ysidro. Local educational and civic life is anchored by sites such as Mar Vista High School and the Montgomery Memorial State Park. The map also captures specialized land uses unique to the border region, such as the Immigration Detention Facility and the dense grid of settlements like Fruitdale and Nestor that would soon consolidate into the modern San Diego suburbs.