Published with a 2002 imprint from survey data gathered in 1998, the U.S. Geological Survey’s “Slidell” presents a precise and evocative portrait of southeastern Louisiana at the turn of the twenty-first century. At a 1:24,000 scale, the map captures the city of Slidell and its surrounding terrain with the clarity for which USGS quadrangles are renowned. Developed areas appear in distinctive pink, water features in blue, and the subtle language of contour lines reveals the low relief and delicate gradients of the Gulf Coast landscape. More than a navigational document, it is a record of a community shaped by bayous, wetlands, transportation corridors, and expanding suburban settlement near Lake Pontchartrain.

Slidell occupies a distinctive position in Louisiana’s geography, lying northeast of New Orleans and close to the Mississippi state line, where land, water, and infrastructure converge. The map shows a city threaded by roads, railways, neighborhoods, schools, parks, and civic landmarks, all set within a broader matrix of marsh, bayou, and low-lying coastal terrain. Highways and local streets chart the patterns of movement that connect Slidell to the wider region, while railway lines recall the city’s origins as a late nineteenth-century railroad town. In this mapped landscape, the modern city is inseparable from the transportation routes that fostered its growth and the watery environment that continues to define its character.

The topographic character of the Slidell region is especially compelling because it is one of subtlety rather than drama. Unlike mountainous quadrangles where contour lines stack densely, this map’s elevations change gradually, expressing the flat coastal plain through modest intervals, depressions, drainage channels, and wetland margins. Blue waterways and reservoirs punctuate the sheet, while bayous and marshy zones reveal the hydrological complexity of southeastern Louisiana. These features are not merely scenic; they are fundamental to settlement, ecology, and risk in the region. The map offers a scientific depiction of a landscape where small changes in elevation can influence flooding, land use, road placement, and the boundary between firm ground and wetland.

As a work of the U.S. Geological Survey, this map belongs to one of America’s most important cartographic traditions. Founded in 1879, the USGS became the nation’s authoritative source for topographic mapping, combining field survey, scientific observation, and standardized design into maps used by engineers, planners, military personnel, naturalists, and the public. The “Slidell” quadrangle reflects that disciplined cartographic language: color-coded land cover, carefully labeled cultural features, precise road classifications, and contouring designed to make terrain legible at a glance. Its apparent simplicity masks a dense accumulation of data, transforming the everyday geography of neighborhoods, schools, parks, military sites, and wetlands into a coherent and enduring spatial record.

Historically, the map is valuable as a snapshot of Slidell and its environs as they stood in the late 1990s, before later waves of development, infrastructure change, and environmental disruption altered portions of the region. Southeastern Louisiana has long been shaped by the interplay of urban expansion, coastal wetlands, storms, and water management, and this quadrangle preserves evidence of that relationship in its roads, land-use patterns, drainage features, and built-up areas. For collectors, it offers the appeal of a modern historical document: recent enough to show a recognizable landscape, yet old enough to mark a distinct moment in the city’s evolution. It is both a technical survey and a quietly rich portrait of place.

Cities, towns and places on this map

• Slidell, Louisiana
• Lakes and regional water bodies
• Bayous
• Roads, including multiple highways and streets
• Villages and neighborhoods within Slidell
• Parks
• Railways
• Schools
• Military sites
• Reservoirs
• Wetlands and marshes
• Land use areas, including residential and commercial zones
• Contours and other topographic features

Historical context & cartographic details

• Produced by the U.S. Geological Survey as a historical 1:24,000 topographical map.
• Based on survey data from 1998 and issued with a 2002 imprint.
• Published by the U.S. Geological Survey, known for scientific data and mapping for government, industry, and the public.
• Uses color coding and contour lines to show elevations, landforms, and geographic features.
• Developed areas are shown in pink, while water bodies are shown in blue.
• Detailed contour lines indicate elevation changes, depressions, and landscape features in the Slidell area.
• Serves as a historical record of development, land use, and geographic conditions that may have changed since 1998.

Looking for a particular place? Review the detailed images to confirm that the town, landmark or feature you have in mind appears on the map. If you are unsure, ask our workshop to check before you order.

Detailed maps are especially rewarding at larger sizes, where names, boundaries and decorative features have more room to be appreciated. Use the close-up preview and size guide to choose the right scale for your wall.

This map looks amazing at sizes all the way up to 50in (125cm). If you are looking for a larger map, please get in touch.

The model in the listing images is holding the 16x20in (40x50cm) version of this map.

Where personalisation is available, you can add a short title or dedication, mark one meaningful place, or request one considered visual detail. See personalised map examples.

Every piece is printed to museum-grade archival standards using fade-resistant pigment inks on acid-free matte paper. Choose an unframed map print, framed map or canvas using the finish options above. Framed maps use crystal-clear optical acrylic and arrive ready to hang.

With its rich detail and strong sense of place, this map makes a considered gift for a new home, anniversary, retirement or anyone with a personal connection to the area shown. Still deciding? Explore our collection of rare old and vintage maps to discover another place, period or style.

This map is also available as a float framed canvas, sometimes known as a shadow gap framed canvas or canvas floater. The map is printed on artist's cotton canvas and then stretched over a handmade box frame. We then "float" the canvas inside a wooden frame, which is available in a range of colours (black, dark brown, oak, antique gold and white). This is a wonderful way to present a map without glazing in front. See some examples of float framed canvas maps and explore the differences between my different finishes.

For something truly unique, this map is also available in "Unique 3D", our trademarked process that dramatically transforms the map so that it has a wonderful sense of depth. We combine the original map with detailed topography and elevation data, so that mountains and the terrain really "pop". For more info and examples of 3D maps, check my Unique 3D page.