1959 Map of Vail

About this map

Vail serves as the industrial hub for this 1950s interior landscape, where the Deschutes River and Skookumchuck River carve through timber-heavy terrain. The settlement is defined by its extensive rail infrastructure, featuring the Mulqueen Railroad and a complex Logging Railroad network that signals the era's intensive forestry operations. Higher elevations like Baumgard Hill and Miller Hill, the latter topped by a Lookout Tower, watch over the surrounding timber stands and the flat expanse of Ruth Prairie. Tracing the border between Thurston and Lewis counties, the map records the transit of the Northern Pacific and Great Northern lines through the northern corridor. In the more secluded valleys, features like Sundown Ranch and Lake Fifteen offer evidence of rural life and natural basins amidst a landscape largely dedicated to industrial harvesting and transit.