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1955 Map of Grand Lake West

Name: 1955 Topographic Map of Grand Lake West
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1960
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1960

About this map

Lacassine National Wildlife Refuge dominates the northern reaches of this coastal Louisiana landscape, where the Intracoastal Waterway cuts through an intricate network of marshes and open water. The map reveals the unique geography of the chenier plain, where ridges like Hackberry Ridge and Pumpkin Ridge provide the only elevated ground for human settlement. Along these narrow strips of oak-covered land, the community of Grand Cheniere stretches parallel to the Mermentau River, supported by the Grand Cheniere Gas Field.

Evidence of local heritage is found in family and community landmarks such as the Boudoin Cem and the Little Cheniere Ch further north. Industrial activity is prominent in the Lowry Oil and Gas Field, while recreational life is signaled by a Drive In Theater near the river. The interplay of water and land is seen in the countless bayous like Lacassine Bayou and the expansive Grand Lake, which define the region's transport and economy in the mid-1950s.