1957 Map of Romance

About this map

The Pocatalico River winds through the jagged ridges of Kanawha, Jackson, and Roane Counties, anchoring a rural landscape defined by narrow hollows and ridge-top homesteads in the mid-20th century. Named settlements like Romance and Advent are small but central to the community, often consisting of little more than a post office or a small cluster of homes at a crossroads. The economic reality of the era is visible in the network of oil wells and the prominent pipelines that cut across the topography, following the natural contours of Fisher Ridge and the steep drops into Opossum Hollow.