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1962 Map of Prichard

Name: 1962 Topographic Map of Prichard
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1977
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1977

About this map

The Big Sandy River forms the vital border between West Virginia and Kentucky, serving as a corridor for the Norfolk and Western Railway and the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway. Along the river banks, the settlements of Prichard and Hubbardstown anchor a landscape defined by its extractive industry, including the Hurricane Strip Mine and the Mineral Springs Mine. A significant tipple and various gas wells demonstrate the intensive energy production of the era, while scattered family-named cemeteries and rural institutions like Brick Church and Shiloh Ch point to deeply rooted local lineages.

Ridgelines like Hurricane Ridge and Pine Ridge segment the terrain, with numerous hollows and branches feeding into larger waterways such as Blaine Creek and Rush Creek. The map shows a clear division between the industrial riverfront, marked by the Catalpa (Big Sandy Sta) station, and the interior highlands where small farms and homesteads were connected by a network of winding forest roads and tracks.