1970 Map of Devils Garden Slough

About this map

Devils Garden Slough defines this region of the Florida Everglades, captured here in a 1970 orthophotomap that reveals the complex drainage and vegetation patterns of the interior wetlands. The orthophoto format, produced from aerial photography by the U.S. Geological Survey and USC&GS, provides a rare visual of how the land was being managed and divided just before the mid-century's intensive agricultural expansion. Movement through this water-rich landscape was largely restricted to the straight-line corridors of Hill Grade Road and Dooley Road, which cut across the natural flow of the slough. These roads served as the primary infrastructure for the developing citrus groves and cattle pastures visible in the rectangular clearings that contrast sharply with the native cypress and marshland. The map also includes dotted land lines established by private surveys, showing the early efforts to organize and parcel this once-remote section of Hendry County.