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1957 Map of Petroleum

Name: 1957 Topographic Map of Petroleum
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1991
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1991

About this map

Petroleum and Volcano anchor a landscape defined by the early industrial development of West Virginia’s oil and gas fields. The Baltimore And Ohio railroad cuts through the center of the sheet, connecting settlements like Eaton to larger markets, while numerous Oil Well and Gas Wells labels indicate the intensive resource extraction underway in the hills. The terrain is deeply dissected by a network of runs including Walker Creek, Goose Creek, and Oil Spring Run, which flow toward the Hughes River in the south.

Rural life in this era is centered around family-named landmarks and local institutions, including Mt Zion Ch, Mt Olive Ch, and Mt Carmel Ch. Genealogists may find value in the scattered cemeteries such as Rizer Cem and Everly Cem, alongside community landmarks like Progress Ridge Sch and the scouting grounds at Camp Ko-Otaga. The map captures the meeting of the Wood and Wirt county lines amidst a complex topography of ridges and narrow valleys.