1957 Map of Seeley

About this map

Seeley stands as the primary settlement in this irrigation-fed landscape of Imperial County, documented through surveys from the late 1950s and updated with late 1970s data. The extensive network of canals and drains, including Westside Drain and Fern Drain, illustrates the complex water management required for agriculture in this arid region. The presence of the Naval Air Facility and its runways highlights the area's mid-century military importance, while the San Diego and Arizona Eastern railroad tracks provide the primary industrial corridor through the desert. Local life is anchored by several rural schools, though the transition of the landscape is evident in the marking of the Silsbee School (Aban'd). Water features like Sunbeam Lake and the meandering New River contrast with the rigid grid of the surrounding desert fields and the specialized Recovery Test Range to the northwest.