1950 Map of Big Sandy

About this map

Big Sandy sits at the junction of rail and river, where the Louisville and Nashville railroad crosses the landscape adjacent to the Kentucky Lake shoreline. The area is defined by the Big Sandy River Dewatering Area, a topographic indicator of the massive hydrological changes brought by mid-century river management. The interior hills of Benton Co are densely marked with markers of rural life, featuring numerous family-named burial grounds and houses of worship. Genealogists will find significant value in the distribution of sites like Baker Chapel Cem, Weatherly Cem, and Rushing Cem. The presence of the Sulphur Creek School and various congregations, including McRae Chapel and Luterton Church, suggests a series of small, tight-knit communities connected by an intricate network of creeks like Ramble Creek and Paffords Branch before the landscape was modernized.