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1951 Map of Chalmette

Name: 1951 Topographic Map of Chalmette
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1953
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1953

About this map

The Mississippi River defines the structure of this coastal landscape, where narrow strips of developed land and plantations like Stanton parallel the river's great bend at English Turn. In the early 1950s, the community of Chalmette and newer developments such as St Claude Heights and Chalmette Vista show the post-war expansion of New Orleans' eastern suburbs. The map captures a high concentration of commemorative and strategic sites, including the Chalmette Nat Mon and Chalmette Nat Cem, alongside the sprawling U S Naval Reservation.

Infrastructure like the Louisiana Southern railroad and the Jackson Protection Levee negotiate the divide between the settled riverfront and the intricate wetlands of Bienvenue Bayou and Villere Bayou to the north. These drainage and protection systems, including the Forty Arpent Protection Levee, were critical to the survival of settlements like Fazandeville and Meraux in this low-lying delta environment.