Published in 1959 from 1958 survey work, the US Geological Survey’s “Boulder City” presents a finely detailed portrait of one of Southern Nevada’s most historically distinctive planned communities and its desert setting. At 1:24,000 scale, the map offers the intimate precision for which USGS quadrangles are prized, showing Boulder City not as an isolated town, but as part of a larger engineered and natural landscape shaped by aridity, elevation, water, and power. The city is marked prominently within a network of roads, utility corridors, and desert terrain, while the surrounding contours reveal the broken relief of the Mojave landscape. Its title is deceptively simple: within “Boulder City” lies a record of mid-century Nevada, where federal infrastructure, desert settlement, and recreational access to Lake Mead converged.

The US Geological Survey, founded in 1879, became the nation’s preeminent authority for mapping the physical character of the United States, and this sheet reflects the agency’s disciplined scientific style. Rather than decorative flourish, its beauty lies in precision: contour lines articulate slopes, washes, ridges, and basins; symbols distinguish roads, buildings, trails, and utility features; and color is used with restrained clarity. The light browns of relief and the greens of selected land cover give the landscape a legible, almost architectural structure. Such maps were indispensable for engineers, planners, geologists, surveyors, and outdoor travelers, translating the complexity of the ground into a rigorous visual language. In this Boulder City quadrangle, that language captures a place where terrain and infrastructure were inseparable.

Boulder City itself occupies a special place in the history of the American West. Created in the 1930s to house workers building Hoover Dam, it was not a boomtown in the usual frontier sense, but a federally planned community tied directly to one of the great engineering projects of the twentieth century. By the time this map was surveyed in 1958, Boulder City had moved beyond its construction-camp origins, yet its identity remained closely connected to the dam, the Colorado River, and the vast reservoir of Lake Mead. The map records that transitional moment: a settled community surrounded by desert expanses, highways, minor roads, and service infrastructure. It evokes the postwar Southwest, when automobile travel, federal land management, and water development were reshaping the region.

The surrounding geography is as compelling as the town itself. Contour lines describe a rugged desert topography of ridges, draws, and open slopes, making visible the dramatic elevation changes characteristic of Southern Nevada. Lake Mead, formed by the impounded waters of the Colorado River behind Hoover Dam, anchors the broader landscape and gives the map its wider regional significance. US Route 93 appears as a vital corridor, linking Boulder City with the dam, Las Vegas, and routes farther into Arizona and the interior West. Minor roads and trails thread through the arid terrain, suggesting access routes for maintenance, recreation, surveying, and exploration. The interplay between natural landforms and human routes gives the map a vivid sense of movement through a difficult but strategically important landscape.

As a historical document, this map preserves Boulder City and its environs at a moment before later decades of intensified growth, tourism, and regional transformation. The proximity of Lake Mead and Hoover Dam made the area central not only to water storage and hydroelectric power, but also to recreation, transportation, and the mythology of modern desert development. Comparing the mapped landscape with the present day reveals changes in urban expansion, road networks, land use, and environmental conditions, especially around Lake Mead and the Colorado River system. Yet the underlying terrain remains legible in the USGS’s meticulous contours. This is a map of infrastructure and desert, of a planned town and an engineered watershed, capturing the austere beauty and historical consequence of Southern Nevada in the late 1950s.

Cities, towns and places on this map

• Boulder City
• Lake Mead
• US Route 93
• The Colorado River
• Desert landscapes and topographical features represented by contour lines
• Minor roads and trails
• Historical or infrastructure elements, such as utilities and buildings, as denoted on the map

Historical context & cartographic details

• Produced by the US Geological Survey, this historical 1:24,000 topographical map shows Boulder City, Nevada and the surrounding area.
• The map is dated 1958 and carries a 1959 imprint.
• The USGS is a scientific agency of the U.S. government known for producing topographical maps and conducting geological surveys.
• The map features contour lines to illustrate elevation and significant terrain changes.
• Its color scheme uses light browns and greens to show elevation and landscape variation.
• The map represents the varied terrain typical of Southern Nevada, including natural features and infrastructure.
• It reflects historical changes in Boulder City and the surrounding area, including urban development, shifts in land use, and environmental changes related to the proximity of Hoover Dam.

Looking for a particular place? Review the detailed images to confirm that the town, landmark or feature you have in mind appears on the map. If you are unsure, ask our workshop to check before you order.

Detailed 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.

This map looks amazing at sizes all the way up to 50in (125cm). If you are looking for a larger map, please get in touch.

The model in the listing images is holding the 16x20in (40x50cm) version of this map.

Where personalisation is available, you can add a short title or dedication, mark one meaningful place, or request one considered visual detail. See personalised map examples.

Every 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.

With 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 rare old and vintage maps to discover another place, period or style.

This map is also available as a float framed canvas, sometimes known as a shadow gap framed canvas or canvas floater. The map is printed on artist's cotton canvas and then stretched over a handmade box frame. We then "float" the canvas inside a wooden frame, which is available in a range of colours (black, dark brown, oak, antique gold and white). This is a wonderful way to present a map without glazing in front. See some examples of float framed canvas maps and explore the differences between my different finishes.

For something truly unique, this map is also available in "Unique 3D", our trademarked process that dramatically transforms the map so that it has a wonderful sense of depth. We combine the original map with detailed topography and elevation data, so that mountains and the terrain really "pop". For more info and examples of 3D maps, check my Unique 3D page.