Geological survey (U.S.)

E.W. Glafcke was in charge of a crew during the United States Geological Survey's spirit leveling activities in Wyoming and Utah from 1896 to 1912.

First organized as a branch in 1889, the Topographic Division was established in 1947.

The Conservation Branch was created July 1, 1925, by Survey Order 115, which consolidated the former Land Classification Branch with the Oil Leasing Organization and Mineral Leasing Division transferred from the Bureau of Mines. It became a division in 1949.

These images were taken as part of the National High Altitude Photography (NHAP) program which operated from 1980 to 1989. The NHAP program was created in 1978 to consolidate federal high altitude photography activities to save money. Fourteen federal agencies contributed funds to the operation which was run out of the U.S. Geological Survey. The NHAP covered the lower 48 states shooting at 40,000 feet on 9 inch negatives. The images are on a scale of 1:58,000 (1 inch equals about .9 miles) and cover about 68 square miles. In 1987 the program name was changed to the National Aerial Photography Program in recognition of modifications in the user requirements and flight specifications.

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) was established on 3 March 1879 by an act of Congress. The USGS has been responsible for making many surveys of the United States and mapping its territories. The USGS is also responsible for monitoring earthquakes, volcanoes, and other geologic hazards that affect the United States. In 1905 the USGS began a major inventory of coal resources in the United States which many people feared were becoming depleted. At issue was a battle between Progressives who desired conservation of natural resources and Conservatives who wished to use natural resources to fuel industrial growth. The coal lands were at the center stage of this controversy as Progressives believed many had been obtained from public land through fraudulent transactions. President Theodore Roosevelt had 66 million acres of coal lands withdrawn from sale. The USGS then began to determine the extent of coal veins in these lands. In 1910 Congress allowed for the sale of coal lands after the USGS had classified and appraised the lands.

The Water Resources Branch was established in 1906 and became a division in 1949. It studies all aspects of water resources, including surface and ground water and quality, quantity, and utilization of water.

In 1901 the work of the Geological Survey was decentralized, and thereafter principal records were maintained by various branches. The Geologic Branch, which became a division in 1949, conducted surveys and investigations to determine the distribution, structure, composition, history, interrelationships, and uses of rock and mineral deposits, and carried on research in geologic and related chemical and physical problems.

The United States government in the early 19th century recognized its responsibility to develop and disseminate maps and charts to promote the safety and welfare of the people. In 1879, the government established the United States Geological Survey (USGS) to provide a comprehensive mapping program covering topography, geology, hydrology, and other natural resources of the nation. By 1882, the agency had developed a project to map the continental United States in a series of land maps to provide information for agriculturalists, miners, engineers, timbermen, and the political and economic interests of the country. The Texas topographic maps in the Virginia Garrett Cartographic History Library were produced as a part of this project.

The topographic maps, called quadrangle maps, are published on atlas sheets approximately 20" x 16.5" and cover systematically subdivided areas of latitude and longitude. They are published in various scales, depending on the size of the area mapped. The scale determines the amount of detail shown and is proportional: the larger the map's scale, the more detail that is shown. Scale is usually written as a ratio of one unit on the map to the same unit on the ground. For example, 1:24,000 means that one inch on the map equals 24,000 inches, or 2,000 feet, on the ground.

The quadrangles are standardized into series determined by scale, ranging from 7.5 Minute Series with a scale of 1:24,000 covering some 49 to 71 square miles, to 1x3 Degree Series with a scale of 1:250,000 covering 4,580 to 8,669 square miles. A series is determined by the present or prospective density of settlement, the economic importance of an area, the complexity of the geology, and/or the degree of detail in the topography. A map is usually named after the most prominent city, town, or natural landmark shown on it.

The data is displayed on the face of the maps by lines, symbols, and nomenclature. These cartographic features are classified in three groups: (1) water, including lakes, ponds, rivers, streams, canals, swamps, etc.; (2) relief, including mountains, hills, valleys, cliffs, etc.; and (3) culture, works of man, such as towns, cities, roads, railroads, boundaries, even major buildings, etc. In the earlier maps, all water features are shown in blue, relief is shown by contour lines in brown, and the works of man are shown in black as is all lettering.

For further information see Texas: Index to Topographic and Other Map Coverage (1987) published by the United States Geological Survey, National Mapping Program, Washington, D.C. A copy of this document has been placed with the collection.

The Geological Survey was established in the Department of the Interior by an act of March 3, 1879, which provided for "the classification of the public lands and the examination of the geological structure, mineral resources, and products of the national domain." An act of September 5, 1962, expanded this authorization to examinations outside the national domain, while topographic mapping and chemical and physical research were authorized by an act of October 2, 1888. The Survey's chief functions are to survey, investigate, and conduct research on the Nation's topography, geology, and mineral and water resources; classify land according to mineral composition and water and power resources; furnish engineering supervision for power permits and Federal Power Commission licenses; supervise naval petroleum reserves and mineral leasing operations on public and Indian lands; and disseminate data relating to these activities. Several statues have provided authorization for publication, sale, and distribution of maps, atlases, monographs, bulletins, water supply papers, and other documents prepared by the Survey.

Upon its establishment the Geological Survey took over some personnel, functions, and records of four earlier surveys. Two of them, the U.S. Geological and Geographical Survey of the Territories (the Hayden Survey), 1867-79, and the U.S. Geographical and Geological Survey of the Rocky Mountain Region (the Powell Survey), 1869-79, operated under the Interior Department. The other two, the U.S. Geographical Surveys West of the One Hundredth Meridian (the Wheeler Survey), 1872-79, and the Geological Exploration of the Fortieth Parallel (the King Survey), 1867-79, operated under the Office of the Chief of Engineers of the War Department. The Geological Survey initiated irrigation surveys and reclamation planning, but this responsibility was transferred in 1907 to the newly established Bureau of Reclamation. Similarly, the Technologic Branch of the Survey, which had been responsible for technologic, as opposed to geologic, aspects of mineral industries, was transferred in 1910 to the Bureau of Mines. By an Executive order of June 4, 1925, the Mineral Resources Division of the Survey, which since 1882 had compiled and published annual statistics on mineral production, was also transferred to the Bureau of Mines.

The Geological Survey consists of a headquarters organization, most of which is in Washington, D.C., and a field organization made up of separate area offices and their subordinate field offices.

The Hayden Survey, under the direction of Ferdinand V. Hayden, was authorized by an act of March 2, 1867, that provided for a geological survey of Nebraska. This was later extended to all the territories, and work was done in Wyoming, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, and Colorado.

The Powell Survey, under the direction of Maj. John W. Powell, was authorized by an act of July 11, 1868, that ordered the "Secretary of War to issue rations for 25 men of an expedition engaged in exploration of the river Colorado." An act of June 23, 1874, authorized the survey to continue in Utah and extended its activities to the Rocky Mountain region.

The King Survey, under the direction of Clarence King, was authorized by an act of March 2, 1867, that provided for exploration of the territory between the Rocky Mountains and the Sierra Nevada Mountains, including possible routes for the Pacific Railroad.

The Wheeler Survey, under the direction of Lt. George M. Wheeler, was authorized by an act of June 1, 1872, to continue "military and geographical surveys and explorations west of the one hundredth meridian."

Part of the mission of the Glen Canyon Environmental Studies (GCES) program was to determine the downstream effects of Glen Canyon Dam on the Grand Canyon. Toward this end, a river trip was organized by Robert H. Webb of the U.S. Geological Survey in which pre-Glen Canyon Dam Colorado River runners were invited to share their knowledge first-hand. The trip - later referred to as the Old Timers or "Legends" trip - took place September 8-20, 1994. At key points along the river, Webb and fellow scientists Ted Melis, Jack Schmidt and Larry Stevens questioned the participants about changes to rapids, flora, and other aspects of the Canyon. In addition, Lew Steiger of the Grand Canyon River Guides (GCRG), Karen Underhill of the NAU Cline Library, and Roy Webb of the University of Utah Marriott Library conducted oral history interviews with both participants and boatmen.

Participants included John Cross Sr., who founded the commercial river company Cross Expeditions and led Boy Scout trips through Glen Canyon; John Cross Jr., commercial boatman from 1961-68 and first person to run Crystal Rapid after it was dramatically changed by a debris flow in 1966; botanist Lois Jotter Cutter, whose first and only previous trip was in 1938 on which she was one of the first two women to successfully traverse the Grand Canyon by river; Kent Frost, a boatman for Norman Nevills in the 1940s and operated a jeep touring company for many years near Canyonlands; Les Jones, an avid canoeist whose first trip was in 1953 and who created the first river guide (a scroll map); Martin Litton, author, photographer, environmentalist and founder of Grand Canyon dories whose first trip was in 1955; Garth Marston, whose first trip was in 1942 in the company of his father, the noted river historian Otis “Dock” Marston; Shirley Marston, who was introduced to river running in the 1940s by her husband Garth; photographer Tad Nichols, who ran Grand Canyon river trips starting in 1952 with Mexican Hat Expeditions and also made numerous Glen Canyon trips; Joan Nevills Staveley and Sandra Nevills Reiff, who began running rivers in the 1940s with their parents, pioneer river guides Norman and Doris Nevills; Joan and her former husband, Gaylord Staveley, operated the river company Canyoneers; Woody Reiff, whose river-related jobs ranged from Lees Ferry park ranger to river company manager and who enjoyed many private Glen Canyon trips; Bob Rigg, who was introduced to the Grand Canyon river scene in 1950, completed an oar-powered speed run in 1951, and with his late brother Jim and Frank Wright operated Mexican Hat Expeditions; and geologist Gene Shoemaker, whose book In the Footsteps of John Wesley Powell (co-authored with Hal Stephens) documents changes to the river corridor over a one-hundred year period.