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1939 Map of Caruthersville

Name: 1939 Topographic Map of Caruthersville
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1943
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1943

About this map

Caruthersville sits at the heart of this 1939 survey, protected by a complex system of river engineering including a Seawall and the Caruthersville Revetment. The Mississippi River dominates the landscape, its shifting course marked by Little Prairie Bend and numerous islands such as Island No. 16. The region's agricultural and industrial character is evident through the dense network of drainage canals and the presence of the St. Louis Southwestern and Missouri San Francisco railroads.

Rural Missouri and Tennessee life is documented through numerous local institutions, from the Mt Olive Ch & Sch to isolated settlements like Cottonwood Pt and Mengelwood. The terrain transitions into the swampy lowlands of the Obion River basin in Tennessee, where features like Running Reelfoot Bayou and White Lake indicate the poorly drained bottoms typical of the era before modern flood control was fully realized. Genealogists can find dozens of specific schoolhouses, such as Needmore Sch and Chute Sch, which served these dispersed river-bank communities.