1953 Map of Fort Drum SW

About this map

Little Gumhead Marsh and Dead Pine Island Marsh dominate this interior Florida landscape, representing a complex wetland system in Okeechobee County during the early 1950s. The terrain is characterized by numerous "hammocks"—islands of dense vegetation rising above the wetlands—many of which bear local family or descriptive names such as Padgett Hammock, Thomas Hammock, and Indian Town Hammock. This era of land management is visible through a network of levees and drainage patterns that intersect the natural flow of Twelvemile Slough and Company Slough. A single Lookout Tower 69 stands as a primary landmark in the southern reaches, overlooking a landscape defined by seasonal water movements and agricultural transitions. The presence of several windmills and small private tracks suggest a reliance on localized ranching or water management in this low-lying region.