Published in 1959 from 1958 mapping, “Bisbee Quadrangle” is a richly detailed United States Geological Survey topographic portrait of one of Arizona’s most evocative mining landscapes. Drawn at the precise 1:24,000 scale, it centers on Bisbee, the celebrated townsite tucked into the Mule Mountains near the Mexican border. The map captures a moment when Bisbee’s identity was shifting from powerhouse copper producer to historic mountain community, preserving the pattern of roads, neighborhoods, schools, rail connections, and rugged slopes as they stood in the late 1950s. Its close contouring gives immediate visual drama to the terrain, revealing how the town’s streets and settlements were shaped by steep canyons, ridges, and the demands of mining-era development.

The United States Geological Survey, founded in 1879, brought scientific rigor and national ambition to the mapping of American landscapes, and this quadrangle exemplifies that tradition. USGS maps were designed not merely to locate towns and roads, but to explain the land itself: its elevations, drainage, vegetation, transportation routes, and human use. In the “Bisbee Quadrangle,” the agency’s characteristic cartographic clarity is especially compelling, with contour lines carefully tracing the broken geometry of the Mule Mountains. Green shading marks forested or vegetated areas, while symbols identify landmarks, public buildings, and developed zones. The result is both utilitarian and beautiful—a disciplined scientific document that also reads as a finely composed visual study of southeastern Arizona.

Bisbee’s history gives this map particular resonance. Founded as a copper, gold, and silver mining town, Bisbee became famous for the Copper Queen Mine and the immense mineral wealth extracted from the surrounding mountains. By 1958, the town retained the imprint of decades of mining enterprise: clustered residential districts, industrial corridors, roads winding through tight terrain, and rail infrastructure linking the community to wider regional markets. The Southern Pacific Railroad and local road network speak to Bisbee’s role within a larger web of commerce stretching toward Douglas, Naco, Tombstone, and the San Pedro Valley. The map records not only geography, but the infrastructure of an economy built in the steep folds of the desert mountains.

The topographic character is the map’s great visual strength. Contour lines crowd together around sharp slopes and ridgelines, then open across gentler ground, allowing the eye to read elevation as intuitively as a relief model. The Mule Mountains dominate the composition, their rugged forms rendered with the precision that made USGS quadrangles indispensable to engineers, geologists, land managers, and travelers. Watercourses and drainage patterns, though often modest in this arid region, are carefully indicated, emphasizing how desert landscapes are shaped by intermittent flow, canyon systems, and elevation change. Against this intricate natural framework, Bisbee’s built environment appears almost sculpted into the terrain, a settlement fitted tightly to geology.

As a historical document, “Bisbee Quadrangle” offers a vivid snapshot of southeastern Arizona at mid-century. It shows a mining town in transition, with established residential areas, civic features such as schools, transportation lines, and nearby natural spaces all arranged within a demanding mountain setting. The map’s blend of urban detail and physical geography makes it especially engaging: one can trace how roads negotiate the slopes, how development gathers in viable pockets, and how the surrounding highlands frame every aspect of local life. For admirers of the American Southwest, mining history, and scientific cartography, this quadrangle is a compelling record of Bisbee’s landscape—precise, atmospheric, and deeply rooted in place.

Cities, towns and places on this map

• Bisbee
• Mule Mountains
• San Pedro River
• Douglas
• Naco
• Tombstone
• Copper Queen Mine
• Townsite of Bisbee
• Roads and railways, including the Southern Pacific Railroad
• Parks and forested areas
• Landmarks identified with symbols
• Schools and residential areas
• Water bodies

Historical context & cartographic details

• Produced by the United States Geological Survey as a historical 1:24,000 topographic map.
• Dated 1958, with a 1959 imprint.
• Published by the United States Geological Survey, established in 1879 and known for scientific research and geological mapping.
• Shows the populated location of Bisbee and the surrounding terrain in Arizona.
• Features detailed contour lines indicating elevation changes.
• Uses varying colors to represent different land uses, including green for forested areas.
• Depicts rugged mountainous terrain characteristic of the southwestern United States.
• Reflects land use and urban development in Bisbee, a historic mining town, as it appeared in the late 1950s.

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.