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1955 Map of Vulcan

Name: 1955 Topographic Map of Vulcan
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1978
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1978

About this map

Industrial extraction and deep woodland define this landscape in the mid-1950s, where the iron mining heritage of the Menominee Range is etched into the terrain. The community of Vulcan and nearby Loretto serve as hubs for the surrounding labor, flanked by the Loretto Mine and Appleton Mine. Large Mine Dumps near Brier Hill signify the scale of subsurface activity that drove the local economy. Heavy rail infrastructure, specifically the Chicago and North Western line, cuts through the river valleys to transport ore out of the region.

North of the industrial sites, the Sturgeon River State Forest covers vast tracts of land, drained by Cassidy Creek and Black Creek. Water resources like Hanbury Lake and Sturgeon Lake provide a sharp contrast to the worked earth of the mines. The presence of an Old Railroad Grade and Siding No 5 reflects shifting transportation patterns as older spurs were bypassed or repurposed during the mid-century period.