Published in December 1941 by the United States Geological Survey, “White Hollow” presents a finely detailed 1:24,000 portrait of a Tennessee landscape newly reshaped by one of the most ambitious public works programs of the twentieth century. Centered on Norris Lake and the surrounding hollows, ridges, roads, trails, and streams, the map captures the terrain only a few years after the completion of Norris Dam in 1936. Its title is modest, drawn from a local place name, yet the sheet records a moment of profound regional change: the conversion of the Clinch River valley into a vast reservoir system designed for flood control, hydroelectric power, and rural modernization under the Tennessee Valley Authority.

The USGS, founded in 1879, brought to this map the disciplined clarity that made its topographic sheets indispensable to engineers, planners, scientists, and travelers. By the early twentieth century, the Survey had become the nation’s preeminent mapping authority, translating complex landscapes into standardized, legible cartographic language. In “White Hollow,” contour lines, elevation marks, watercourses, and transportation routes work together to create a precise visual inventory of the land. The sheet belongs to an era when federal mapping was closely tied to infrastructure, conservation, and resource management, and its careful rendering reflects both scientific ambition and practical necessity in a rapidly changing American South.

Norris Lake dominates the geography of the map, its branching arms occupying former river valleys and extending into the hilly countryside around White Hollow and Campbell’s Landing. The Clinch River, once a free-flowing waterway through this rugged portion of Tennessee, appears here as part of a transformed hydrological system shaped by the Tennessee Valley Authority. The TVA’s Norris project was both a technological landmark and a social experiment, intended to control floods, generate electricity, improve navigation, and stimulate economic development. On the map, the lake is not simply a feature of scenery; it is evidence of a new relationship between landscape, government planning, and regional progress.

The topographic character of the sheet is especially compelling, with closely spaced contour lines revealing steep slopes, narrow valleys, and rounded Appalachian hills. Elevations, including marks such as 1050 feet, give structure to the terrain, while the interplay of greens and blues lends the map the vivid visual quality associated with mid-century USGS design. Hachures and contours emphasize relief, making the land feel sculptural and immediate. Roads and trails thread through the ridges and hollows, suggesting small-scale movement across a difficult landscape, while unnamed streams and minor water bodies create a dense network of natural drainage feeding the larger reservoir.

As a historical document, “White Hollow” records a Tennessee countryside at a pivotal point between rural past and modern engineered future. Since 1941, the shores of Norris Lake have seen recreational development, shifting patterns of land use, changing forest cover, and the continuing environmental consequences of dam construction. Yet the map preserves an earlier configuration of roads, settlements, landforms, and water edges with remarkable intimacy. Its quiet details—Campbell’s Landing, White Hollow, forested slopes, valley roads, and the expanded waters of the Clinch—invite close study. For collectors, it offers more than geography: it is a snapshot of New Deal transformation fixed in elegant topographic form.

Cities, towns and places on this map

• Norris Lake
• Clinch River
• Campbell's Landing
• White Hollow
• Various unnamed valleys and hills
• Roads and trails around the vicinity
• Surrounding forested areas
• Other minor water bodies or streams indicated in the area

Historical context & cartographic details

• Produced by the United States Geological Survey as a historical 1:24,000 topographical map of Norris Lake and the surrounding area in Tennessee.
• Published in December 1941; USGS records the publication year as 1941, with no separate imprint year specified.
• The USGS was established in 1879 and became a key federal source for detailed mapping and geological data across the United States.
• Norris Lake was created by Norris Dam, completed in 1936 as part of the Tennessee Valley Authority’s flood control, electricity, and recreation projects.
• The map uses contour lines and hachures to depict elevation changes.
• Topographic relief is rendered in vibrant greens and blues, characteristic of mid-20th-century USGS topographic maps.
• The sheet shows significant elevation variation and water features, reflecting the hilly terrain surrounding the lake.
• Noted elevations include examples such as 1050 ft.
• Since publication, the area has experienced urban development, land-use changes, and environmental impacts connected to Tennessee Valley Authority projects.

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.