1956 Map of Western

About this map

The tiny settlement of Western sits near the confluence of Johns River and Ditch Creek, serving as a central point in this heavily-wooded coastal landscape of the mid-1950s. The terrain is defined by a dense network of watercourses flowing toward the coast, including the Elk River and the three distinct branches — West, Middle, and East Branch — that feed into it. To the south, the North River meanders through the Smith Creek State Wildlife Area, where a system of levees and piling indicates efforts to manage the wetlands and tidal influence near the Grays Harbor and Pacific County border. This survey, revised in the early 1990s from 1950s data, illustrates the intricate drainage patterns of the Washington coast, from the Cedar River in the southwest to the Florence and Hall creeks in the northeast.