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1980 Map of Bradford

Name: 1980 Topographic Map of Bradford
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1982
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1982

About this map

The oil and gas fields of northern Pennsylvania dominate the high plateau country shown here in 1980, where the heavy industry of Bradford meets the dense woodlands of the Allegheny National Forest. This era shows a complex infrastructure supporting resource extraction, with extensive oil and gas fields blanketing the landscape between deep creek valleys. The regional transport network is anchored by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and Conrail, which wind through steep terrain to serve industrial settlements like Smethport and Mt Jewett.

Water management and conservation are central to the landscape, featuring the massive Allegheny Reservoir to the west and the East Branch Clarion River Lake to the south. The map documents numerous small communities like Kushequa, Gifford, and Lewis Run, many of which grew around earlier timber and tanning industries. Large tracts of land are preserved as State Game Lands No 30 and within the Susquehannock State Forest, illustrating the balance between industrial use and public forest management at the start of the 1980s.