1952 Map of Seward D-6

About this map

Turnagain Arm dominates this mid-century landscape, where the tides of the Cook Inlet met the early industrial infrastructure of Southcentral Alaska. At the mouth of Glacier Creek, the settlement of Girdwood is positioned just below the slopes of Mount Alyeska, before the area became a major international ski destination. The map documents the critical transport corridor where The Alaska Railroad and the Anchorage Seward Highway skirt the coastal mudflats, providing a vital link between the Kenai Peninsula and Anchorage. Further east at the head of the arm, the town of Portage serves as a junction near the Twentymile Sawmill and Lower Engineers Camp. The presence of several airstrips and a gravel pit near the Placer River valley highlights the logistical importance of this narrow passage between the mountains and the sea during the post-war era.