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1909 Map of Central City

Name: 1909 Topographic Map of Central City
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1917
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1917

About this map

Central City serves as the industrial hub for this 1907 survey, where three major rail lines converge: the Louisville and Nashville, the Illinois Central, and the Kentucky Midland. This intersection highlights the region's early 20th-century dependence on both rail and water transport. The Green River and Rough River wind through the landscape, their banks dotted with essential river crossings like Knotts Ferry, Ayres Ferry, and Kinchloe Ferry.

Rural community life is well-documented through a dense network of local landmarks, including Shavers Chapel, Bethlehem Church, and numerous country schools such as Chestnut Grove School and Nollsinger School. The map also captures the early footprints of coal-dependent settlements like Cleaton and Hillside, and provides a clear look at the county boundaries of McLean, Ohio, and Muhlenberg counties as they were defined before the mid-century.