1954 Map of Wheelwright

About this map

Coal country at the intersection of Floyd, Pike, Knott, and Letcher counties is defined by a dense network of hollows and company towns. The Chesapeake and Ohio railroad winds through the valleys, serving significant mountain settlements like Wheelwright and Weeksbury. The landscape is etched with the industrial infrastructure of the era, including a notable Incline near Ligon and several gas wells scattered across the ridges. Educational and community life is centered around local institutions such as Dunbar High Sch and Marshall Br Sch, alongside smaller congregations at Pilgrim Ch and Joppa Ch. This survey, compiled from coal company records and aerial photography, reveals the tight relationship between the narrow bottomlands of Beaver Creek and the steep terrain of Abner Mtn, documenting a period when these isolated mountain passes were bustling centers of Kentucky mining and transit.