The plateau lends its name to the Mogollon tribe, part of the Cochise-Mogollan peoples who inhabited this and nearby areas from 5,000 to 2,500 years ago.
At the south and southwest of the plateau, bordering the Mogollon Rim numerous lakes occur.
Just south is Blue Ridge Reservoir on East Clear Creek.
Numerous washes, or creeks trend north on the plateau from the Mogollon Rim; at the west they trend more northeast, towards the Painted Desert region.
The southern one, Fossil Springs Wilderness, is more closely associated with the Mogollon Rim.