Rare Old Map of Bisbee, Arizona by USGS, 1958 – Mule Mountains & Copper Queen Mine
Restored in our London workshop from the original 1959 map and printed to museum-grade archival standards. Full description
The Collector’s Offer
Choose two eligible works and receive 20% off both. Choose three and the lowest-priced one is complimentary, a maximum saving of 33%.
Mix and match eligible standard maps and fine-art prints. No code is required; the offer is applied automatically at checkout.
Standard made-to-order configurations are included. Bespoke sizes, personalised designs and commissioned work are excluded.
Need delivery to different addresses? Contact us before ordering.The Collector’s Offer
Choose two eligible works and receive 20% off both. Choose three and the lowest-priced one is complimentary, a maximum saving of 33%.
Mix and match eligible standard maps and fine-art prints. No code is required; the offer is applied automatically at checkout.
Standard made-to-order configurations are included. Bespoke sizes, personalised designs and commissioned work are excluded.
Need delivery to different addresses? Contact us before ordering.
Restored in London • Printed and framed in the USA
Restored from the original 1959 map and printed to museum-grade archival standards. Full description
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Gift message & custom finish
If you want to add a gift message, or a finish (jigsaw, aluminium board, etc.) that is not available here, please request it in the "order note" when you check out.
Every order is custom made, so if you need the size adjusted slightly, or printed on an unusual material, just let us know. We've done thousands of custom orders over the years, so there's (almost) nothing we can't manage.
You can also contact us before you order, if you prefer!
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Published in 1959 from 1958 mapping, “Bisbee Quadrangle” is a richly detailed United States Geological Survey topographic portrait of one of Arizona’s...
Continue readingPublished 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.
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.
Many of our maps and art prints are chosen as thoughtful gifts for homes, offices, studies and meaningful places.
Choose a framed option for the easiest ready-to-hang gift, or choose an unframed print if the recipient may prefer to select their own frame.
We make orders locally in 23 countries around the world, so gifts can often be produced close to the recipient. This helps them arrive faster, travel more safely, and avoid customs or import duty surprises.
- We can deliver directly to the recipient
- Framed pieces arrive ready to hang
- Unframed prints are carefully packed in a strong protective tube
- Almost every order is made locally, for faster, safer gifting
- 90-day returns give the recipient time to decide
If you are not sure what to choose, please contact us. We can help you pick the right map, size, finish or delivery option.
Most orders are made locally and delivered in around 2–3 working days, depending on the product, size and destination.
We print and frame maps and artwork in 23 countries around the world, so your order is usually made close to you or your recipient. That means faster delivery, less time in transit, and no customs or import duty surprises.
Personalised and customised pieces usually take an extra 1–2 working days, because we prepare your design and send it to you for approval before printing.
Very large framed orders can take a little longer, as they need extra care in production and delivery.
Every order is carefully packaged: unframed prints are sent in a strong protective tube, while framed pieces are securely packed with protective materials around the frame.
If you need your order by a particular date, please contact us before ordering. We’ll check the best production route and delivery option for your location.
Express delivery is available at checkout for most countries. Next-day delivery is available in the UK, US, Singapore and the UAE.
Your order is covered by our 90-day returns policy and 10-year guarantee.
Our standard frame is a gallery-style black ash hardwood frame, with a simple, modern look. It is approximately 20mm (0.8in) wide. You can also view some lovely customer photos of framed maps and art.
We use super-clear acrylic glazing, also known as Perspex or Acrylite, instead of traditional glass. It is lighter, safer, and has lower reflectivity, giving the artwork a clearer, cleaner appearance.
Six standard frame colours are available at no extra cost: black, dark brown, dark grey, oak, white, and antique gold. Custom framing and mounting/matting is also available for customers looking for something more specific.
Most maps, art prints, and illustrations are also available as a framed canvas. We use matte cotton canvas, stretch it over a sustainably sourced wooden box frame, and then float the piece within a wooden outer frame. The finished result is beautifully presented, with no glazing between you and the artwork.
All frames are supplied ready to hang, with either string or brackets fitted to the back. Very large frames will include heavy-duty hanging plates and/or a mounting baton. If you have any questions, please get in touch.
We can also supply old maps and artwork on canvas, foam board, cotton rag, and other materials.
If you would prefer to frame your map or artwork yourself, please read our size guide before ordering.
Every Unique Maps piece begins with an authentic cartographic source or an original design from our London studio.
For our historic maps, we source rare originals from libraries, archives, auction houses and private collections around the world. We carefully restore each map for print—repairing age-related damage, balancing colour and improving clarity while preserving its original detail, texture and character.
Once restored, the map is prepared for your chosen size and finish. Your piece is then printed and, where selected, framed close to its delivery destination.
Our map prints use acid-free 200gsm archival matte paper and fade-resistant pigment inks, creating a rich, non-glossy finish designed to last. Framed maps use crystal-clear optical acrylic and arrive ready to hang.
Canvas, cotton-rag and other specialist presentations are also available. Learn more about our materials and finishes.
Personalising your map
You can add a short title or dedication, mark one meaningful place, or request one considered visual detail. For personalised designs, we send a proof before printing and you can request changes before approval.
For more complex bespoke commissions, contact our design team.
Original or Aged
Choose Original for true-to-source colour, or Aged for a warmer, richer antique character created with our specialist ageing process. See examples of our Aged maps.
We’ve been restoring and producing maps and art prints since 1984, and we stand behind every piece.
Every order is covered by our 10-year guarantee and damage-free delivery guarantee. If your piece arrives damaged, we’ll replace or remake it free of charge. If anything else isn’t right, contact our workshop team and we’ll put it right promptly.
See our returns and refund policy for full details.
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