1968 Map of Laurel Fork

About this map

Big Reed Island Creek and its many winding tributaries like Sulphur Spring Br and Potters Br define this high-country landscape along the border of Carroll and Patrick counties. This 1968 field survey shows a rural mountain economy organized around the Blue Ridge Parkway, which traces the crest of the Blue Ridge through the southern portion of the sheet. The settlement patterns are typical of the era, with small communities like Gladesboro and Laurel Fork serving as local hubs, each supporting numerous small houses of worship including the Blue Ridge Tabernacle, New Fellowship Ch, and Crooked Oak Ch. For genealogists and local historians, the map is remarkably dense with unnamed cemeteries and family landmarks like Jackson Knob, Branscomb Hill, and Gibson Knob. The presence of the Laurel Fork Sch and a Lookout Tower near Groundhog Mtn suggests a landscape of active forest management and established rural education during the late 1960s.