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1939 Map of Caplinger Mills

Name: 1939 Topographic Map of Caplinger Mills
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1954
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1954

About this map

The Sac River winds through the heart of this Cedar County landscape, defining the rural economy and geography of the late 1930s. At Caplinger Mills, the river’s power is harnessed at a historic mill site, while the surrounding hills are dotted with a dense network of one-room schoolhouses like Spring Valley Sch, Elliston Sch, and Mt Enon Sch. This survey reveals the importance of local commerce centers such as Lelia Store and Hackleman Corner, which served as vital hubs for the surrounding farming community.

Evidence of early family settlements and genealogical data can be found at the Hackleman Cem and Parker Cem. The terrain transitions from the river bottomlands at Horsehoe Bend to the more prominent elevations of Vilhauer Bluff and the Coal Bank Hills to the east. These physical features, combined with named hollows like Haynie Hollow and Peavine Hollow, illustrate a deeply established agrarian society before the widespread consolidation of rural infrastructure.