Loading map...

1954 Map of Baton Rouge

Name: 1954 Topographic Map of Baton Rouge
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1974
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1974

About this map

The Mississippi River winds through the heart of south-central Louisiana in this mid-century survey, anchoring a landscape defined by its complex relationship with water. To the west, the Atchafalaya Floodway and Morganza Floodway illustrate the massive engineering efforts required to manage the basin's drainage. The map reveals the dense rail networks of the era, including the Illinois Central Gulf RR and Southern Pacific RR, which connected river towns like Donaldsonville and Plaquemine to larger hubs like Baton Rouge and New Orleans.

Large inland water bodies such as Lake Maurepas and the western edge of Lake Pontchartrain dominate the eastern reaches, while the intricate bayou system including Bayou Manchac and Bayou Teche highlights the historic transit routes of the Acadiana region. From the state line down through the Atchafalaya Basin, the map preserves the mid-century footprint of parish boundaries and early state highways during a period of significant regional growth.