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1959 Map of Baldwin Gap

Name: 1959 Topographic Map of Baldwin Gap
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1987
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1987

About this map

Stone Mountain dominates the high-elevation divide where the Tennessee and North Carolina state line cuts through the southern Appalachian highlands. This 1959 field-checked landscape reveals a tightly knit network of valley settlements and small family farms connected by winding roads and the Stage Road. Along the North Fork New River, communities like Sutherland and Ashland serve as hubs for the surrounding hollows.

Genealogists will find exceptional detail in the sheer number of family burial grounds and country churches marking these slopes, from Hammon Chapel to the Rock Creek Baptist Church. The topography is defined by significant gaps and knobs, including Baldwin Gap and Big Knob, while the eastern portion of the map transitions into the Cherokee National Forest. These features, alongside Long Hope Falls, illustrate a mountain economy rooted in the narrow fertile bottoms and the timbered heights of the Tennessee Valley Authority region.