Loading map...

1968 Map of Whitesville

Name: 1968 Topographic Map of Whitesville
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1971
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1971

About this map

Whitesville and the industrial corridors of the southern West Virginia coalfields are captured here during the late 1960s. The landscape is defined by the winding paths of the Coal River and the Marsh Fork, which serve as the primary arteries for both transportation and settlement. The Chesapeake and Ohio railroad snakes alongside these waterways, connecting numerous mining communities such as Montcoal, Stickney, and Edwight.

Evidence of the area's extraction economy is visible in the numerous strip mines and tailings ponds that dot the ridges of Cherry Pond Mountain. Away from the rail lines, family-named landmarks and local burial grounds like Jarrolds Cem and Asbury Cem offer vital clues for genealogists tracing the residents of narrow valleys like James Creek. The presence of institutions like Marsh Fork High Sch and Shumate Chapel underscores the social infrastructure supporting these often-isolated mountain settlements.