Loading map...

1947 Map of Wayne City

Name: 1947 Topographic Map of Wayne City
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1947
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1947

About this map

Skillet Fork and its complex network of tributaries, including Horse Creek and Fourmile Creek, dominate this mid-century landscape of southern Illinois. The area is characterized by a high density of rural institutions, with dozens of one-room schoolhouses like Mills Sch and Berry Sch serving scattered agricultural communities. The Southern railroad corridor acts as the primary industrial spine, linking the settlements of Bluford, Keenes, Wayne City, and Sims.

Genealogists will find a wealth of specific local landmarks, from the Garrison Cem and Lappin Cem to country churches such as Jacobs Chapel and New Zion Ch. Notable terrain features like Potato Hill and Fleming Ridge rise above the bottomlands, while the Illinois Central Reservoir near Bluford indicates the vital role of water infrastructure for the steam-era rail lines. The map captures the region just before the consolidation of rural school districts fundamentally changed the local social geography.