Loading map...

1914 Map of Union Island

Name: 1914 Topographic Map of Union Island
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1914
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1914

About this map

Union Island and the surrounding San Joaquin Delta are defined here by a complex hydraulic landscape of natural waterways and early 20th-century irrigation engineering. This 1914 survey illustrates the intricate network of the Old River and Middle River as they weave through low-lying tracts, supplemented by man-made channels like the Grant Line Canal and the Fabian and Bell Canal. These waterways were critical for transforming the delta into productive agricultural land, a process overseen by state engineers like W. F. McClure.

Rural community life is anchored by local landmarks such as the Undine School and Naglee School, providing essential locations for genealogists researching early San Joaquin County families. The southern portion of the sheet is dominated by the El Pescadero (Pico and Naglee) land grant, where the Southern Pacific railroad cuts across the terrain near the pumping plants that managed the region's delicate water levels.