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1932 Map of Three Sisters

Name: 1932 Topographic Map of Three Sisters
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1932
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1932

About this map

Sisters and the early settlement of Camp Polk serve as the eastern gateways to the high volcanic peaks of the Central Oregon Cascades in this 1932 edition. The map details the transition from the high desert plains into the dense timber of the Santiam National Forest and Deschutes National Forest. The landscape is dominated by a chain of massive summits and craters, including North Sister, Middle Sister, and South Sister, alongside the glaciated peak of Broken Top.

Evidence of the era's transport and land use is clear in the routing of the McKenzie Highway and Santiam Highway, which provided critical passage through the mountains. To the north, the headwaters of the Metolius River emerge near Camp Sherman, while significant alpine water bodies like Suttle Lake and Sparks Lake dot the elevations. Glacial features such as Collier Glacier and Hayden Glacier are recorded at a time before significant mid-century recession, offering a baseline for environmental historians.