1943 Map of Oyster Creek

About this map

Bastrop Bayou and Austin Bayou snake through this low-lying coastal landscape, defining a region where water and rail dictated early settlement. The Missouri Pacific railroad cuts a straight diagonal across the wetlands, connecting small outposts like Mims and Pharr to the larger centers of Stratton Ridge and the coastal community of Oyster Creek. The map reveals a complex hydrologic network of sloughs and lakes, including Salt Lake and Square Island Lake, which separate the inland prairies from the Gulf marshes.