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1957 Map of Trona

Name: 1957 Topographic Map of Trona
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1964
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1964

About this map

Searles Lake and the industrial potash settlements that grew around its saline crust anchor the northern portion of this High Desert landscape. By the late 1950s, the region was defined by a mix of specialized mining towns like Trona, Borosolvay, and Argus, alongside the massive footprint of the Naval Ordnance Test Station. Further south, the historic mining district surrounding Randsburg and Johannesburg remains prominent, connected to the wider world by the Southern Pacific RR.

The map reveals a landscape of high basins and arid sinks, where dry lakebeds like Koehn Lake, Superior Lake, and Soda Lake indicate the interior drainage patterns of the Mojave Desert. Large military holdings, including the Camp Irwin Military Reservation and the edge of Edwards Air Force Base, occupy significant portions of the desert floor, reflecting the era's mid-century strategic expansion into these isolated terrains.