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2022 Map of Holston Valley

Name: 2022 Topographic Map of Holston Valley
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 2022
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 2022

About this map

South Holston Lake dominates the central and southern reaches of this landscape, its complex shoreline carving around The Knobs and into Deep Hole Hollow. The geography is defined by a series of parallel ridges and valleys, including McConnell Ridge and the Paperville Knobs, which separate small agricultural and residential pockets from the timbered reaches of the Cherokee National Forest and Jefferson National Forest. The settlement pattern is largely influenced by these natural corridors, with clusters of homes and small communities like Painter Spring, Cold Spring, and the curiously named Goose Pimple Junction situated along the valley floors.

For family historians, the area is notable for its numerous small burial grounds and rural congregations. Sites such as the Cleveland Presbyterian Church, the Pemberton-Hawkins-Grant Cem, and Sauls Cem provide vital links to the families who settled this borderland between Tennessee and Virginia. The terrain transitions from the edges of Bristol into the more isolated hollows like Mud Hollow and Mobley Hollow, illustrating the enduring intersection of mountain agriculture and forest preservation.