1960 Map of Big Woods NW

About this map

The Red River of the North winds in dramatic oxbows along the border of North Dakota and Minnesota, defining the eastern edge of St Andrews and Acton townships. This 1960 survey by the U.S. Geological Survey and the State of North Dakota Water Conservation Commission details a landscape shaped by water and agriculture. Small rural centers of community life are scattered throughout the grid, including St Joseph Ch and the Zion Cem, alongside numbered one-room schoolhouses like School No 87, School No 14, and School No 30. Tributaries such as the Park River and Tamarac River feed into the main channel, while the Dipple Drain illustrates early efforts at managing the flat, fertile valley floor. In the southeastern corner, Horseshoe Lake serves as a prominent example of a cutoff meander, evidence of the river's shifting path over time.