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1918 Map of Richwood

Name: 1918 Topographic Map of Richwood
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1920
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1920

About this map

The Cherry River corridor serves as the industrial and transit backbone for this portion of Nicholas and Greenbrier counties during the early twentieth century. The Baltimore and Ohio railroad follows the river's path, connecting the thriving settlement of Richwood to Fenwick and Saxman. This preliminary survey highlights a landscape defined by isolated rural schools and small-scale water-powered industry, evidenced by Hominy Mill and the nearby Hominy Falls.

Settlement patterns are deeply influenced by the rugged topography of Big Mountain and Grassy Ridge, where a network of small schoolhouses like the Odell School, Bamboo School, and Mayflower School served dispersed families. These family-named landmarks and local sites, including Linn Low Place and Potato Hole Knob, offer a detailed view of the region's geography before later twentieth-century developments altered the character of these mountain communities.