1984 – Municipal Boundary of Shepherdstown Jefferson County — West Virginia

Map courtesy of the Jefferson County Assessor’s Office

The Map

John Kusner conducted extensive research and measurement for his 1984 map of the municipal boundaries of Shepherdstown. The history of the town’s development and boundary changes are documented on the left-hand side of the map sheet. Streets and other features such as Town Run (the stream that runs through the center of town), churches, cemeteries, and historic buildings (e.g., the Entler Hotel and the Shepherd Mill) are identified throughout.

Note the alternate name of German Street. Its name was officially changed to Main Street during World War I, but it was later changed back to German Street.

Kusner also identifies other landmarks such as stones at the corners of King and New Streets, believed to be the original town boundary markers.

The Map Maker

  • John Stroud Kusner

    John Stroud Kusner (1935-2009) was born in New York City and raised in Gainesville, Florida. He was a graduate of Shepherd College. After working at the Northwestern University Observatory, he returned to West Virginia and worked for the Smithsonian Institution, was elected to the Bolivar Town Council, and served as Jefferson County surveyor.

    In 1985, sponsored by the National Geographic Society, he wentto Peru with his Shepherd College colleague Roland Bergman to study the rural economy of the indigenous population around Lake Titicaca. While there, he helped restore a Victorian-era British-built warship on the lake, taught engineering at
    several Peruvian universities, conducted socio-economic studies, and co-authored a book, based on his research, which he illustrated with maps.