1962 Map of Petroleum

About this map

The Salamonie River winds through the southern landscape of this 1962 survey, which documents a rural Indiana region spanning the borders of Wells, Blackford, and Jay Counties. Small agricultural hubs and crossroads like Petroleum, Nottingham, Fiat, and Balbec are dispersed across the township lands of Harrison and Penn. The local infrastructure of the early 1960s is preserved here, featuring local landmarks such as Petroleum Sch, Union Chapel, and the Gilead Ch near the banks of Beaver Creek. Traces of the region's namesake industry are visible through scattered Oil Wells, particularly concentrated near the settlement of Petroleum. Significant local genealogy markers include Bloxsom Cem and a network of family-named roads such as Godfrey Road and McClain Road that connected these farming communities before modern highway expansion.