1954 Map of Waterloo

To the west, the campus of Iowa State College stands at Ames, while the deep-cut valley of the Boone River and East Fork Des Moines River break the prairie at Boone and Webster City. The map reveals the intricate water network of Wolf Creek and Black Hawk Creek, which supported established settlements like Marshalltown and Eldora. From the northern reaches near Pilot Knob to the southern river bends, the placement of numerous quarries and grain elevators highlights the era's reliance on local mineral extraction and large-scale grain storage.