1954 Map of Ocean Springs

About this map

The coastal community of Ocean Springs is captured here during a period of significant post-war expansion along the Mississippi Gulf Coast. The town’s relationship with the water is defined by the Louisville and Nashville railroad and the Memorial Bridge connecting it westward to Biloxi. The map reveals a complex network of coastal waterways including the Old Fort Bayou, Back Bay of Biloxi, and the sheltered waters behind Deer Island. Beyond the established town center, newer developments like Gulf Hills and Halstead emerge, while the northern reaches remain largely under the canopy of the De Soto National Forest. A notable 1970s photorevision layer in purple highlights the rapid growth of residential tracts and trailer parks near the Gulfpark Airport, illustrating the suburbanization that transformed the Jackson County shoreline decades after the initial 1954 survey.