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1939 Map of Speedwell

Name: 1939 Topographic Map of Speedwell
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1939
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1939

About this map

Wytheville stands as the central hub of this pre-war survey, where the Lee Highway intersects with the Norfolk and Western railroad line. The landscape is defined by the heavy ridges of Lick Mountain and Henley Mountain, creating a natural barrier between the urban center and the rural agricultural valleys to the south. Along the banks of Cripple Creek, the small settlement of Speedwell and the Little Wythe Furnace represent the region's early industrial and mineral heritage.

The distribution of dozens of rural schoolhouses, such as Royal Oak Sch, Cedar Hill Sch, and Huddle Sch, reveals a densely populated mountain countryside before the mid-century trend of school consolidation. In the southern reaches, the Jefferson National Forest encompasses prominent summits like Comers Rock and High Knob. This map preserves the locations of numerous vanished landmarks and family-named features, from Government Siding to the remote Devils Den near the Wythe Co and Grayson Co border.