1956 Map of Kennett

About this map

Kennett serves as the focal point for this mid-century survey of Missouri’s bootheel, a landscape defined by an extensive reclamation system of man-made drainage ditches and natural sloughs. The St Louis Southwestern Railway cuts a diagonal path through the region, connecting agricultural hubs like Senath, Arbyrd, and Hornersville. This map illustrates the transition of the swampy bottomlands of the St Francis River into productive farmland, as evidenced by the dense grid of numbered canals such as Main Ditch No 10 and Ditch No 36. Numerous family and community landmarks appear throughout the rural sections, including Harkeys Chapel, Lula Ch & Cem, and the Bootheel Air Field. Small, named settlements like Bucoda and Cotton Plant provide a detailed look at the rural settlement patterns before the further consolidation of these communities.