1981 Map of Cumberland

About this map

Cumberland stands as a central industrial and transportation hub at the junction of the North Branch Potomac River and Wills Creek. By the early 1980s, the landscape reflected over a century of heavy rail and water infrastructure, dominated by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and the historic Chesapeake and Ohio Canal. To the west, the Allegheny Front rises sharply, defining a ridge-and-valley geography where towns like Frostburg, Mount Savage, and Lonaconing developed around coal and manufacturing. The map detail highlights the dense network of valleys where settlements were dictated by the winding path of the Potomac River and its tributaries. Massive conservation areas like Savage River State Forest and Green Ridge State Forest cover the high ridges, preserving the natural character of the Appalachian highlands amidst the regional coal and timber history. This survey captures the region just as traditional industry and modern interstate travel via Interstate 70 began to reshape the tri-state borderlands of Maryland, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.