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1984 Map of Franklin Lake

Name: 1984 Topographic Map of Franklin Lake
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1985
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1985

About this map

The Neches River serpentines along the boundary of Hardin and Jasper counties, defining a landscape of dense bottomland and intricate waterways within the Big Thicket National Preserve. This 1984 provisional survey documents a river-bound environment where the water's path is marked by sharp oxbows and named bends such as Cocklebur Bend and Old Stove Bend. The surrounding terrain is a mosaic of sloughs and overflow lakes, including Franklin Lake, Black Creek Lake, and Shade Lake, which speak to the area's hydrology before modern modifications.

Settlement is sparse in this protected corridor, with Quinn appearing as the primary named community on the eastern side. Local geography is rich with descriptive family and descriptive landmarks like Bear Mans Bluff, Gore Landing, and Peach Tree Point. These features, alongside ridges like Lone Pine Ridge, provide essential points of orientation in a region dominated by the shifting currents of the Neches River and its many offshoots like Tobacco Slough and Burnt Slough.