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1963 Map of Hurley

Name: 1963 Topographic Map of Hurley
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1964
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1964

About this map

The winding course of Knox Creek dictates the layout of human life along the border of Virginia and Kentucky in the early 1960s. This survey records the industrial and social infrastructure of the central Appalachian coalfields, where the Norfolk and Western railroad snakes through deep hollows to serve settlements like Hurley, Kelsa, and Argo. The landscape is a complex network of resource extraction and local community, indicated by the numerous gas wells, coal mines, and a large strip mine positioned along the ridges.

Local institutions are well-documented, from the Hurley Sch and Ira Sch to rural religious centers such as Bethany Ch and Elk Creek Ch. The map provides a detailed view of family-named geography in the surrounding hollows, including Monk Hol, Maiden Hel Fork, and Enoch Fork. The boundary line between Pike Co and Buchanan Co cuts across the northern ridges, marking the intersection of these two coal-producing counties.