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1947 Map of Gorham

Name: 1947 Topographic Map of Gorham
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1978
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1978

About this map

Big Muddy River meanders in tight, dramatic oxbows through Jackson County, defining the low-lying terrain of the Grand Tower Oakwood Bottoms. The landscape is a study in river-driven geography, where complex bends like Mill Bend, Horseshoe Bend, and Cripps Bend once shaped the local transit and timber patterns. This post-war landscape, updated with mid-1970s data, reveals the infrastructure of the Shawnee National Forest, including the Fountain Bluff Lookout Tower and Hickory Ridge Lookout Tower, which guarded these timbered ridges.

Local settlements such as Gorham, Grand Tower, and Sand Ridge are connected by a network of rail lines, including the Missouri Pacific and Illinois Central. Genealogists and local historians will find significant value in the documentation of rural landmarks like Goodbread Cem, Hudson Cem, and Henson Cem, alongside old educational centers like the Shoal Creek School and Pond Sch. The presence of the Rattlesnake Ferry site on the river's edge points to the earlier era of river crossings that preceded modern bridge networks in this corner of Illinois.