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1968 Map of Great Machipongo Inlet

Name: 1968 Topographic Map of Great Machipongo Inlet
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1980
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1980

About this map

Cobb Island and the southern tip of Hog Island dominate this coastal survey of Northampton County, illustrating the dynamic barrier islands of Virginia's Eastern Shore. The map documents a shifting maritime landscape where the Atlantic Ocean meets the intricate waterways of Hog Island Bay. The prominent Great Machipongo Inlet serves as the primary passage between the islands, fed by a network of deep-water paths including North Channel and Rowes Hole Channel.

A solitary Light on the northern end of Cobb Island indicates the essential navigational aids required for mariners traversing these often-treacherous shoals. Large expanses of Tidal Flat and the secondary passage of Second Channel highlight the ecological complexity of the region. This 1968 study, with revisions through the late 1970s, provides a technical view of the shoreline before the continued natural migration of these landforms altered the inlet's configuration.