1977 Map of Robertsburg

About this map

The Kanawha River dominates this orthophotoquad, its broad valley supporting a linear mosaic of cultivated fields that contrast sharply with the densely forested uplands of Mason County. This 1977 aerial perspective reveals the river-oriented settlement patterns of the late 1970s, where small riverfront communities like Robertsburg, Southside, and Leon occupy the fertile bottomlands. Further inland, the landscape shifts to the narrow, winding valleys of Thirteenmile Creek and the steep, timbered slopes of Manila Ridge. The orthophoto format provides a clear view of land use, from the precise geometry of flood-plain agriculture to the scattered homesteads in rural enclaves such as Waterloo, Arbuckle, and Manila. This survey is particularly useful for identifying specific building locations and forest boundaries as they existed shortly after the mid-century peak of West Virginia's rural agriculture.