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1923 Map of Tyrone

Name: 1923 Topographic Map of Tyrone
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1931
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1931

About this map

Huntingdon Furnace, Union Furnace, and Pennsylvania Furnace stand as industrial anchors in a landscape defined by the deep valleys of the Little Juniata River and Spruce Creek. During the early 1920s, this region of Blair and Huntingdon counties was a nexus of heavy rail traffic, where the Pennsylvania Railroad main line met numerous specialized spurs like the Tyrone and Clearfield Branch and the Petersburg Branch. These tracks followed the gaps carved through Bald Eagle Mountain and Tussey Mountain, serving established iron-working communities and rural settlements.

The settlement pattern reflects a reliance on water power and mineral resources, evidenced by landmarks like Graziers Mill and the scattered company-town layout of Pennsylvania Furnace. Rural life is meticulously documented through dozens of named schoolhouses, such as Hickory Bottom School and Cabin Forge School, which served the farming populations tucked into the hollows of Snyder and Warriorsmark townships. The map captures the transition of the iron industry into a more diversified agrarian and transport-driven economy.