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1936 Map of Herrin

Name: 1936 Topographic Map of Herrin
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1963
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1963

About this map

The Big Muddy River and its numerous tributaries, including the Little Muddy River and Crab Orchard Creek, dominate this portion of Southern Illinois during the mid-1930s. This survey, revised by R.B. Marshall and his team, reveals a landscape densely populated with small coal-era settlements and a complex network of railroads like the Illinois Central and the Coal Belt. The distribution of rural schools, such as Highbank School and Arkansas School, alongside churches like Williams Church, reflects the established farming and mining communities of the time.

Industrial and transport hubs are prominent, with Herrin serving as a major center near the junction of several rail lines. The map also preserves the locations of smaller, potentially transitioned locales like Old Duquoin and Cambria (Reeves PO). Notable terrain features like Iron Mountain and the swampy reaches of Buster Pond provide a clear view of the natural geography before later twentieth-century development and land use changes altered the southern Illinois coal fields.