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1971 Map of Pass A Loutre West

Name: 1971 Topographic Map of Pass A Loutre West
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1974
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1974

About this map

The Mississippi River delta in Plaquemines Parish reveals a complex aquatic landscape of shifting channels and marshland as it appeared in the early 1970s. This orthophotomap, derived from 1971 aerial photography, captures the transition of the river's main flow through the Head of Passes Light where it bifurcates into numerous distributaries. Industrial activity is prominent in this environment, evidenced by the Duck Oil Field and various sludge pits located amongst the wetlands.

Conservation areas dominate the topography, with the Delta National Wildlife Refuge and the Pass A Loutre State Waterfowl Management Area protecting critical habitat. Notable landmarks include family-named or descriptively titled features such as Dead Women Pass, Brant Island, and Savage Island. The map provides an essential record of water bodies like Dead Women Inside Pond and Camps Pond before subsequent coastal erosion and subsidence further altered the delta's fragile geometry.