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1967 Map of Lester

Name: 1967 Topographic Map of Lester
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1970
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1970

About this map

Slab Fork District and Trap Hill Town define the industrial heart of this Raleigh County landscape during the late 1960s. The map captures an era of intense resource extraction, where heavy rail infrastructure from the Norfolk and Western and Chesapeake and Ohio railroads weaves through the hollows to serve numerous mining operations. Prominent Mine Dumps and Strip Mines are mapped alongside the company towns that supported them, including Stotesbury, Tams, and Helen.

The rugged geography of Acord Ridge and Horsepen Ridge funnels settlement along watercourses like Winding Gulf and Slab Fork. While larger centers like Lester and Sophia show established street grids, the map also preserves smaller locales such as Hoohoo and Skinner. Cultural landmarks, including the Farley Hill Ch and various cemeteries, provide essential points of reference for genealogists tracing families in these coal-producing communities.