1892 Map of Bonnet Carre

About this map

The Mississippi River and the vast waters of Lake Pontchartrain dominate this late nineteenth-century delta landscape, which is defined by the tension between river commerce and the low-lying wetlands. The presence of the Bonnet Carre Crevasse indicates the persistent threat of river flooding that shaped local geography long before the modern spillway era. On the narrow strip of land between the river and the lake, settlements like Bonnet Carre, Lucy, and Freetown grew alongside early rail networks including the Louisville New Orleans and Texas Railroad. To the north, the Chicago St. Louis and New Orleans Railroad hugs the lakefront, passing through isolated outposts like Frenier and La Branche surrounded by complex drainage systems like Bayou Trepagnier and Bayou La Branche.