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1951 Map of Smedley

Name: 1951 Topographic Map of Smedley
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1951
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1951

About this map

Smedley and the surrounding rural townships of Jefferson and Vernon are documented here just after the mid-century, revealing a landscape defined by sharp ridges and deep hollows. The Chicago Indianapolis and Louisville railroad cuts through the southern terrain, serving the small community of Oxonia (Hitchcock Sta). This geography created a decentralized network of social life, where numerous small congregations and schoolhouses like Prowsville Ch and Four Corners Sch anchored various valleys.

Waterways such as Rush Creek and Twin Creek dictate the settlement patterns, with homesteads following the narrow level ground between high points like Green Ridge and Mount Carmel Ridge. For genealogists, the map is particularly valuable for locating family-named landmarks and resting places, including Prowsville Cem and the Old Smedley Cem, which provide specific geographic context for early Washington County residents.