1943 Map of Big Piney

About this map

Fort Leonard Wood dominates the northern landscape of this Missouri Ozarks region, surveyed between 1932 and 1941. The installation borders the Mark Twain National Forest, illustrating a mid-century shift toward military and federal land use in Pulaski and Texas counties. Winding through the center of the sheet, the Big Piney River carves a deep path past landmarks like Wildcat Shoal and Ross Bridge, anchoring a rural economy of small settlements and river crossings. Small communities like Bloodland, Cookville, and Hazleton are mapped alongside an extensive network of country schools, such as Lone Star Sch and Cedar Bluff Sch, many of which served dispersed farmsteads before being impacted by the expansion of the fort. Notable local sites include Berry Cave, the Roby Lookout tower, and the St Annie Ch, providing a detailed look at the social and topographic fabric of the area just as the Second World War began to transform the local geography.