{"product_id":"old-map-of-creede-colorado-by-usgs-1959-rio-grande-river-wolf-creek-pass","title":"Old Map of Creede, Colorado by USGS, 1959 – Rio Grande River \u0026 Wolf Creek Pass","description":"\u003cp\u003ePublished in 1979 from original 1959 survey data, “Creede” presents a finely detailed USGS topographic portrait of one of Colorado’s most dramatic mountain districts. At a scale of 1:62,500, the map captures Creede and its surrounding high country with the clarity and restraint characteristic of mid-century American government cartography. Contour lines sweep densely across the sheet, translating steep ridges, gulches, creek valleys, and alpine basins into a precise visual language. The result is both scientific and evocative: a record of terrain as it was understood in 1959, before later decades of development, recreation infrastructure, and environmental change altered parts of the region’s human and natural landscape.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCreede itself occupies a storied place in Colorado history, especially as a late nineteenth-century silver-mining town set deep in the San Juan Mountains. The map situates the town within the rugged drainage of the Rio Grande River and Willow Creek, with East Willow Creek, Little Gopher Creek, and Leavitt Creek threading through narrow valleys and steep-walled terrain. These waterways were more than geographic features; they shaped routes of travel, settlement, prospecting, and access to mineral claims. The map’s careful rendering of creeks, roads, and trails allows the viewer to read the landscape almost as miners, ranchers, surveyors, and early motorists might have encountered it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe surrounding relief is the map’s great subject. Castle Peak, Silver Park, the GS Mountains, and nearby ridgelines rise through tight contour intervals, revealing a landscape of abrupt elevation shifts and complex mountain forms. The USGS style gives particular force to this terrain: contour lines, color gradations, and shaded relief work together to create a disciplined but richly textured image of the high Colorado Rockies. Rather than romanticizing the mountains, the map measures them, and in doing so conveys their scale. Passes, drainages, benches, and basins emerge with quiet authority, inviting close study of how water and elevation govern movement through the region.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe inclusion of South Fork, Wolf Creek Pass, and the San Luis Hills broadens the map’s significance beyond Creede’s immediate mining landscape. These features connect the district to wider regional patterns of travel, watershed geography, and settlement in southern Colorado. Wolf Creek Pass, long an important crossing through the San Juan Mountains, evokes the challenges of transportation in a region where weather, altitude, and terrain dictate access. The Rio Grande River and its tributaries anchor the composition, while reservoirs, roads, and trails indicate the human adaptations imposed upon a demanding alpine environment. Together, these details create a layered record of natural systems and practical occupation.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs a historical topographic map, “Creede” is especially compelling because it preserves a mid-twentieth-century snapshot of landforms, routes, settlements, and mapped knowledge. USGS maps of this period were designed for utility, but their precision now gives them archival beauty: they show not only where things were, but how the land was interpreted. Comparing this 1959-based depiction with present-day mapping can reveal changes in land use, road networks, recreational access, water management, and development around Creede and the upper Rio Grande country. Its value lies in that dual identity—both a technical survey document and an elegant cartographic record of a remarkable Colorado mountain landscape.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eCities, towns and places on this map\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCreede\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSilver Park\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eRio Grande River\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWillow Creek\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eLittle Gopher Creek\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eLeavitt Creek\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eEast Willow Creek\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSouth Fork\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCastle Peak\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eGs Mountains\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWolf Creek Pass\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSan Luis Hills\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eReservoirs, not named\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eVarious trails and roads, not named\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eHistorical context \u0026amp; cartographic details\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMap title: \u003cem\u003eCreede\u003c\/em\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eProduced by the US Geological Survey, USGS\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eOriginal data from 1959; published in 1979\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHistorical topographic map at a scale of 1:62,500\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDepicts Creede, Colorado, and the surrounding mountainous terrain\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eUses standard USGS topographic conventions, including contour lines to represent elevation\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eShading and color gradients indicate terrain relief and elevation changes\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eShows rugged mountainous terrain typical of the Creede area\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eReflects the geographical characteristics of Creede and its surroundings as of 1959\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eUseful for comparing historical land use, development, and environmental change with modern maps\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLooking for a particular place?\u003c\/strong\u003e Review the detailed images to confirm that the town, landmark or feature you have in mind appears on the map. If you are unsure, \u003ca target=\"”_blank”\" href=\"\/fr\/pages\/contact-us\"\u003eask our workshop to check before you order\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eDetailed maps are especially rewarding at larger sizes, where names, boundaries and decorative features have more room to be appreciated. Use the close-up preview and size guide to choose the right scale for your wall.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis map looks amazing at sizes all the way up to 50in (125cm). If you are looking for a larger map, please \u003ca href=\"\/fr\/pages\/contact-us\"\u003eget in touch\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe model in the listing images is holding the 16x20in (40x50cm) version of this map.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhere personalisation is available, you can add a short title or dedication, mark one meaningful place, or request one considered visual detail. \u003ca target=\"”_blank”\" href=\"\/fr\/pages\/map-personalisation\"\u003eSee personalised map examples\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eEvery piece is printed to museum-grade archival standards using fade-resistant pigment inks on acid-free matte paper. Choose an unframed map print, framed map or canvas using the finish options above. Framed maps use crystal-clear optical acrylic and arrive ready to hang.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWith its rich detail and strong sense of place, this map makes a considered gift for a new home, anniversary, retirement or anyone with a personal connection to the area shown. Still deciding? Explore our collection of \u003ca target=\"”_blank”\" href=\"\/fr\/collections\/all-old-vintage-antique-maps\"\u003erare old and vintage maps\u003c\/a\u003e to discover another place, period or style.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"The Unique Maps Co.","offers":[{"title":"12x16in (30x40cm) \/ Map","offer_id":59891902448000,"sku":null,"price":361.0,"currency_code":"CNY","in_stock":true},{"title":"12x16in (30x40cm) \/ Framed map","offer_id":59891902480768,"sku":null,"price":970.0,"currency_code":"CNY","in_stock":true},{"title":"12x16in (30x40cm) \/ Framed canvas map","offer_id":59891902513536,"sku":null,"price":0.0,"currency_code":"CNY","in_stock":true},{"title":"A3 (297x420mm) \/ Map","offer_id":59891902546304,"sku":null,"price":361.0,"currency_code":"CNY","in_stock":true},{"title":"A3 (297x420mm) \/ Framed map","offer_id":59891902579072,"sku":null,"price":970.0,"currency_code":"CNY","in_stock":true},{"title":"A3 (297x420mm) \/ Framed canvas 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