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1980 Map of Halfmile Shoals

Name: 1980 Topographic Map of Halfmile Shoals
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1987
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1987

About this map

The Cahaba River winds through the heart of this landscape, its path defined by natural obstacles like Halfmile Shoals and Lilly Shoals. By the 1970s, the terrain south of Tannehill State Park shows a significant industrial imprint, with extensive strip mines scarring the ridges between the river and the surrounding mountains. These excavations follow the coal-rich seams that long sustained local settlements like Marvel, Garnsey, and Belle Ellen.

Transportation networks are heavily tied to this extractive economy, with the Southern and Louisville and Nashville railroads cutting through the valleys. Amidst this industrial activity, the map records the enduring social geography of rural Alabama, noting Hickman Ch, Shady Grove Ch, and the isolated McKenney Cem. The convergence of the Tuscaloosa, Jefferson, and Shelby county lines highlights the area's position as a crossroads of the state's central mining and timber districts.