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1918 Map of Turner Ranch

Name: 1918 Topographic Map of Turner Ranch
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1943
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1943

About this map

Large family-held estates and a complex network of waterways define this area of the Central Valley during the early twentieth century. The San Joaquin River snakes through the southern portion of the sheet, feeding into an intricate system of natural and man-made channels including the Sanjon De Santa Rita and the Stevinson Canal. This landscape, surveyed just before the First World War, reflects the transition of the marshy valley floor into organized agricultural production.

Remote outposts like Cranes Ranch, Turner Ranch, and Hogland Ranch serve as primary landmarks in a region dominated by sloughs. The presence of the Dickerson Ferry Road in the north suggests earlier patterns of transit before more permanent infrastructure arrived. Numerous wells dot the landscape near Owens Creek and Duck Slough, indicating the vital role of groundwater management in sustaining these large-scale ranching operations.