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1953 Map of Shooks Gap

Name: 1953 Topographic Map of Shooks Gap
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1955
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1955

About this map

The French Broad River and Holston River converge on this 1950s sheet to form the headwaters of the Tennessee River, framing the eastern expansion of Knoxville. The landscape is a mix of river-bottom agriculture and industrial extraction, most notably at Meades Quarry and Neubert Quarry. Before the full dominance of modern bridges, the Riverdale Ferry still served as a vital crossing point near the settlement of Riverdale.

Tracing the rural uplands toward the Knox and Sevier County line reveals a dense network of family-named landmarks and institutions like the Sevier Home and the Bible College at Kimberlin Heights. Significant land use is dedicated to the Eastern State Hospital Farm on the riverbanks, while the southern ridges are marked by numerous country churches such as Hendron Chapel Church and New Hopewell Church, each with associated cemeteries that provide deep genealogical value for the region.