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1971 Map of Pilottown

Name: 1971 Topographic Map of Pilottown
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1984
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1984

About this map

The Mississippi River splits into its major distributaries at the Head of Passes, a critical maritime junction in the Mississippi Delta. This 1971 orthophotomap provides a rare visual of the marshy labyrinth before modern subsidence accelerated, showing the intricate network of Grand Pass, Main Pass, and Southwest Pass. At the heart of this activity is Pilottown, the remote outpost for river pilots, complete with its Radio Tower and Lookout Tower.

Conservation and industrial efforts coexist across the wetlands, with the Delta National Wildlife Refuge and Pass a Loutre State Waterfowl Management Area protecting the habitat while the West Bay Oil and Gas Field and scattered Oil Wells mark the energy economy. Family-named landmarks like Mary Bowers Pond and Bob Taylors Pond suggest a history of local usage within the shifting terrain of Jaquines Island and Drauzenes Island.