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1970 Map of Frenchmans Bayou

Name: 1970 Topographic Map of Frenchmans Bayou
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1993
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1993

About this map

Frenchmans Bayou serves as the focal point of this delta landscape along the Arkansas-Tennessee border. The terrain is defined by the intricate hydrology of the Mississippi River floodplain, where several oxbow lakes including Meneshea Lake, Stave Lake, and Swan Lake trace the ancestral paths of the river. The presence of the St Francis Levee and an extensive drainage system, such as Ditch No 15 and Ditch No 1, illustrates the monumental engineering required to manage the wetlands for agriculture and settlement.

Smaller communities and rural centers like St Thomas, Meneshea, and Lambethville are connected by the St Louis-San Francisco railroad, which cuts a straight line through the alluvial plains. Local life is anchored by institutions such as St Pauls Ch, Lake Grove Ch, and Shawnee Sch. Along the river's edge, features like Massey Bar and Brandywine Chute mark the ever-shifting boundary between states on Centennial Island.