Titled “Fayetteville,” this United States Geological Survey map presents the celebrated West Virginia town and its dramatic Appalachian setting as surveyed in 1969 and published with a 1977 imprint. At 1:24,000 scale, it belongs to the USGS tradition of highly legible quadrangle mapping, designed to translate complex terrain into a precise visual language of contour lines, symbols, roads, streams, and settlement patterns. Fayetteville appears not merely as a town, but as a gateway to a landscape of steep slopes, wooded ridges, and incised river valleys. The map captures a moment just before the New River Gorge gained wider national recognition as a protected and recreational landscape.

The cartography is classic USGS: disciplined, practical, and quietly elegant. Contour lines articulate the rise and fall of the terrain with remarkable clarity, revealing the rugged topographic character that defines this part of southern West Virginia. Color grading and conventional symbols distinguish forests, watercourses, transportation routes, built areas, and relief, allowing the viewer to read both natural form and human presence at a glance. The New River and its tributaries carve through the composition, their courses framed by hillsides and narrow valleys. For collectors, the appeal lies in the map’s combination of scientific precision and visual richness, where every road bend and contour interval contributes to a larger portrait of place.

Fayetteville’s historical identity is inseparable from the New River Gorge, one of the most striking river landscapes in the eastern United States. Long before its designation as a national park and preserve, the gorge was known for its dramatic geology, coalfield history, rail corridors, and difficult terrain. This map records the region during an important period of transition, when older patterns of extraction and rural settlement increasingly overlapped with conservation, tourism, and outdoor recreation. The surrounding hills, valleys, streams, and forested tracts shown here help explain why the area later became renowned for rock climbing, hiking, rafting, and scenic exploration.

Transportation routes give the map an additional historical layer. U.S. Route 19 and other local roads trace practical passages through a challenging landscape, connecting Fayetteville with nearby communities and the broader region. New Haven, Summersville, smaller settlements, road junctions, and trails form a network of movement across the mountainous terrain. In a topographic map like this, infrastructure is never incidental: it reveals how people adapted to the constraints of ridges, hollows, river crossings, and steep gradients. The result is a vivid record of access and settlement, showing both the persistence of local communities and the logistical challenges posed by the Appalachian Plateau.

As a document of land, water, and human activity, the “Fayetteville” quadrangle is especially compelling because it predates many of the area’s later associations with nationally recognized recreation and conservation. Its careful depiction of river systems, forested areas, parks, trails, and rugged landforms preserves a detailed view of the region at a pivotal moment. The map invites close study: each contour suggests a climb, each tributary a hidden hollow, each road a route through difficult country. For anyone drawn to West Virginia, Appalachian geography, or the evolving story of the New River Gorge, it offers a richly informative and atmospheric portrait of place.

Cities, towns and places on this map

• Fayetteville
• New River
• New Haven
• Summersville
• U.S. Route 19 and other highways and roads
• Various trails
• Surrounding hills and valleys
• Tributaries, streams, and other nearby river features
• Forested areas and parks
• Recreational landmarks and outdoor activity areas

Historical context & cartographic details

• Historical 1:24,000 topographical map of Fayetteville, West Virginia and the surrounding area
• Produced by the US Geological Survey
• Dated 1969 with a 1977 imprint
• Shows rugged Appalachian terrain, including hills, river valleys, and the New River
• Uses conventional USGS topographic symbols and color grading to show elevation changes
• Designed for clear navigation, reference, environmental study, and land management
• Reflects geographical and infrastructural changes in the Fayetteville area since publication
• Connected to the wider history of conservation, development, and outdoor recreation in the New River Gorge region

Looking for a particular place? Review the detailed images to confirm that the town, landmark or feature you have in mind appears on the map. If you are unsure, ask our workshop to check before you order.

Detailed maps are especially rewarding at larger sizes, where names, boundaries and decorative features have more room to be appreciated. Use the close-up preview and size guide to choose the right scale for your wall.

This map looks amazing at sizes all the way up to 50in (125cm). If you are looking for a larger map, please get in touch.

The model in the listing images is holding the 16x20in (40x50cm) version of this map.

Where personalisation is available, you can add a short title or dedication, mark one meaningful place, or request one considered visual detail. See personalised map examples.

Every piece is printed to museum-grade archival standards using fade-resistant pigment inks on acid-free matte paper. Choose an unframed map print, framed map or canvas using the finish options above. Framed maps use crystal-clear optical acrylic and arrive ready to hang.

With its rich detail and strong sense of place, this map makes a considered gift for a new home, anniversary, retirement or anyone with a personal connection to the area shown. Still deciding? Explore our collection of rare old and vintage maps to discover another place, period or style.

This map is also available as a float framed canvas, sometimes known as a shadow gap framed canvas or canvas floater. The map is printed on artist's cotton canvas and then stretched over a handmade box frame. We then "float" the canvas inside a wooden frame, which is available in a range of colours (black, dark brown, oak, antique gold and white). This is a wonderful way to present a map without glazing in front. See some examples of float framed canvas maps and explore the differences between my different finishes.

For something truly unique, this map is also available in "Unique 3D", our trademarked process that dramatically transforms the map so that it has a wonderful sense of depth. We combine the original map with detailed topography and elevation data, so that mountains and the terrain really "pop". For more info and examples of 3D maps, check my Unique 3D page.