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1948 Map of St. Lucie Inlet

Name: 1948 Topographic Map of St. Lucie Inlet
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1958
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1958

About this map

The confluence of the St Lucie River and the Indian River defines this coastal landscape as it appeared in the late 1940s. The bustling hub of Stuart is centered in the west, while the massive airfield at Witham Field dominates the central peninsula. Navigation is a central theme of the era, from the deep-water Intracoastal Waterway to the dangerous waters around the St Lucie Inlet, where features like Hole in the Wall and Hell Gate hint at the challenges for local mariners.

Large historical land tracts, including the Hanson Grant and Gomez Grant, persist in the legal geography of the region, overlaying a developing network of settlements from Jensen Beach down to Salerno. The Florida East Coast railroad serves as the primary land artery, running parallel to the shoreline through Port Sewall and Rio. Long stretches of Hutchinson Island remain relatively sparse, marked only by landmarks like the Lookout Tower and Bessie Cove, providing a view of the Atlantic coast before modern high-rise development.