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1951 Map of Valdez B-3

Name: 1951 Topographic Map of Valdez B-3
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1993
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1993

About this map

The settlement of Ernestine stands as a focal point in this 1951 study of the Alaskan interior, situated along the vital Richardson Highway. This corridor represents a critical overland link in the mid-century, following the drainages of the Little Tonsina River and Tiekel River. The terrain is defined by a dense network of glacial and mountain streams, including Mosquito Creek and Ernestine Creek, which carve through the high elevations between the highway and the massive Copper River valley to the east.

Eastern portions of the map show the early boundaries of what would become the Wrangell-St Elias National Park, featuring the braided channels of the Copper River and the steep glacial valleys of the Uranatina River and Haley Creek. The geography reveals a landscape where transport is strictly confined to the narrow highway valley, while the remainder of the territory is dominated by the wild watersheds of the Wrangell-St Elias Wilderness.