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1892 Map of Hillsville

Name: 1892 Topographic Map of Hillsville
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1892
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1892

About this map

Industrial activity along the New River and Cripple Creek defines this late nineteenth-century portrait of Southwest Virginia. The landscape is marked by the heavy infrastructure of the era, including the Ivanhoe Furnace, Boom Furnace, and Radford Furnace, alongside significant extraction at the Lead Mines. These operations were served by the Norfolk and Western RR and a network of river crossings such as Jackson Ferry and Jones Ford.

South of the industrial corridor, Hillsville sits as a central hub for the upland farming and milling communities. Local economic life is evidenced by family enterprises like Hawks Mill and Spargers Mill located near the Virginia North Carolina Boundary Line. The terrain is characterized by prominent peaks like Felt Knob and Pilot Knob, while gaps such as Fancy Gap and Piper Gap provided essential passage through the surrounding mountain ridges.