1960 Map of Wall

About this map

Wall and the smaller settlement of Quinn anchor this South Dakota landscape, situated along the corridor of the Chicago and North Western railroad. The topography is dominated by the dramatic shift from the plains of Buffalo Gap National Grassland into the northern reaches of the Badlands National Monument. This 1960 survey, updated with 1978 revisions, shows the area as it transitioned from a remote prairie junction into a regional waypoint, evidenced by the presence of a Landing Field and Trailer Park near the town center of Wall. The intricate drainage patterns of Cottonwood Creek and Whitewater Creek carve through landforms like Bloom Basin and Lake Hill, illustrating the erosive forces that characterize the edge of the Badlands. The map also documents the transition of several land parcels from the Fairview district toward the designated grassland and monument boundaries.