1907 Map of Vishnu

About this map

Vishnu Temple and the towering architecture of the inner gorge dominate this early 20th-century topographic record of the canyon's heart. Surveyed just after the turn of the century by Francois E. Matthes and Richard T. Evans, the map documents a landscape before the era of mass tourism, focusing on the junction of the Colorado River and the Little Colorado River. Early settlement footprints are sparse but significant, including the Hance Ranch and a lonely Cabin on the eastern plateaus. The topography is meticulously detailed, tracing the descent from the Walhalla Plateau down through the Basalt Cliffs to the churning Hance Rapids. Historically significant routes like the Tonto Trail and Tanner Trail are mapped as thin threads through the immense terrain, while family-named landmarks like Newberry Butte and Cardenas Butte identify the landforms for early explorers and geologists.