1977 Map of Lexington

About this map

Lexington and East Lexington anchor this orthophotomap, showing the concentrated urban core and spreading residential footprints as they appeared in the late 1970s. The aerial imagery, captured by the Geological Survey in cooperation with the Soil Conservation Service, reveals a landscape defined by its complex drainage network. The Maury River snakes through the center of the sheet, joined by several tributaries including Kerrs Creek, Whistle Creek, and Mill Creek. This orthophoto provides a direct photographic record of land use and vegetation patterns that traditional line-and-tint maps omit, showing the density of forest cover surrounding the river corridors and the sharp divisions between agricultural fields and the expanding limits of the city. The confluence of the Maury River and the South River is visible at the edge of the survey, marking a significant hydrologic junction in the region.