1963 Map of Thoreau

About this map

Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe railroad tracks cut across the southern plains of this McKinley County landscape, marking a vital transit corridor through the high desert. The terrain is defined by the broad path of Casamero Draw and the more restricted Mitchell Draw, which navigate the mesa-studded topography. Evidence of mid-century industrial activity is scattered across the sheet, specifically near the northern ridges where the Moe Mine and other unnamed Mines are located. These small-scale extraction points alongside a prominent Pipeline illustrate the region's 1960s economy. Local habitation is represented by the Andrews Ranch and Elkins Ranch, which appear as isolated outposts in a territory otherwise dominated by geological features like Rincon Canyon. This 1963 field-checked survey captures the area just as aerial photogrammetry was becoming the standard for documenting the American Southwest's complex drainage patterns and land-use markers.