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1916 Map of Bluefield

Name: 1916 Topographic Map of Bluefield
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1916
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1916

About this map

Princeton and the coal-driven rail corridors of the Norfolk and Western Railway define this detailed survey of Mercer County and the Virginia borderlands. The landscape is defined by the steep ridges of Flat Top Mountain and East River Mountain, which dictated the early infrastructure of the region. Dozens of rural schoolhouses are documented here, including Sand Gap School, Pinnacle School, and Willis White School, reflecting a densely populated rural landscape of small farming and mining communities.

The presence of Mercer Healing Springs and small stations like McKenzie Sta near Hardy PO provides evidence of the varied economic life of the early 20th century. Along the Bluestone River, settlements like Matoaka and Spanishburg appear during a period of transition as timber and rail interests reshaped the Appalachian terrain. To the south, the emergence of South Bluefield shows the expansion of the regional hub alongside Beaver Pond Creek.