1963 Map of Bedford

About this map

The Mississippi River creates a complex landscape of shifting borders and braided waterways in this 1963 survey of the borderlands between Louisiana and Mississippi. The map reveals the intricate meander patterns of the river, where the Louisiana Mississippi state line and various parish boundaries follow old channels that have long since been bypassed by the main current. This creates unique geographic anomalies like Palmyra Island and Diamond Island, where land ownership is dictated by the river's historic path. Evidence of local aviation and rural infrastructure is scattered across these river bends, including the Parker Landing Strip and Diamond Point Landing Strip. Settlement is concentrated near the river's edge at Bedford and King, while inland features like Crystal Springs Cem and Hodges Cem provide critical points of interest for those researching the genealogy of Madison Parish and the surrounding river bottomlands.