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1965 Map of Chesser Island

Name: 1965 Topographic Map of Chesser Island
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1967
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1967

About this map

Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge dominates this mid-1960s phototopographic study, revealing the intricate water and land patterns of the southeastern Georgia wetlands. The map provides an overhead perspective of the Suwannee Canal as it cuts through the dense vegetation of Chesser Prairie and Mizell Prairie. Unlike traditional topographic maps, this edition uses a green-and-blue photomosaic base to distinguish between open water like Cooter Lake and the various "prairies," which are actually marshy areas of aquatic plants and grasses.

Settlement is concentrated along the higher ground of Trail Ridge on the eastern boundary, where Camp Cornelia serves as an entry point to the swamp. Within the interior, slightly elevated landforms such as Chesser Island, Hog Island, and Big Cypress Camp Island rise out of the flooded terrain, providing critical landmarks and historic camp sites in a landscape defined by the shifting boundaries of Grand Prairie and Coward Lake Prairie.