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1963 Map of Roanoke

Name: 1963 Topographic Map of Roanoke
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1963
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1963

About this map

The Blue Ridge Mountains and Alleghany Mountains dominate this mid-century survey, illustrating the complex topographic gateway between the Piedmont and the Shenandoah Valley. Urban centers like Roanoke and Lynchburg emerge as vital industrial hubs, their growth inextricably linked to the massive rail networks of the Norfolk and Western and Chesapeake and Ohio railroads. The map captures the region during a period of significant hydroelectric and recreational development, most notably with the formation of Smith Mountain Lake on the Roanoke River.

From the high peaks of The Priest and Apple Orchard Mountain to the rolling tobacco lands near Gretna and Chatham, the landscape transitions from the protected wilderness of the George Washington National Forest to the small-town agricultural centers of Farmville and Blackstone. River systems such as the James River and Appomattox River provide the primary drainage for this vast corridor of Central Virginia.