1935 Map of Lake Mechant

About this map

The sprawling marshlands of Terrebonne Parish are captured here in intricate detail during the mid-1930s, documenting a fragile coastal landscape defined by shifting water and land. Lake Mechant serves as the central anchor of the sheet, surrounded by a complex network of bayous that governed travel and life in the wetlands. To the north, Bayou De Cade meanders toward Raccourci Bay, while the small settlement of Merchant provides a rare point of human habitation on the map. The landscape reflects a precarious environment where major bodies of water like Caillou Lake and Mud Lake are connected by narrow channels such as Grand Bayou du Pass and Large Bayou. This survey, compiled from aerial photographs, preserves the exact shoreline and waterway configurations before decades of coastal erosion and industrial channelization altered the character of this Louisiana delta region.