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1966 Map of Tovar Mesa

Name: 1966 Topographic Map of Tovar Mesa
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1968
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1968

About this map

The high plateau of the Hopi Indian Reservation and the surrounding Navajo Hopi Joint Use Area define this mid-1960s landscape in Navajo and Coconino Counties. This arid expanse is characterized by deep drainages like Oraibi Wash and Polacca Wash, which cut through the wind-swept Sand Dunes and the rising slopes of Tovar Mesa. Water management is the central theme of human activity shown here, evident in the network of small reservoirs such as Navajo Lookout Dam, Backbone Dam, and White Clay Dam.

Named geological features like Giants Chair and Elbow Point provide navigational landmarks across the desert terrain. Life in this region relied heavily on scattered water sources, including Burro Spring and Shonto Spring. Near the southern boundary, the settlement of Tees Toh and the seasonal waters of Jadito Wash illustrate the enduring relationship between the landscape and its inhabitants in the years before the land partitioning of the 1970s.