Published in 1980 from 1968 mapping, the US Geological Survey’s “Madisonville Quadrangle” presents a richly detailed topographical portrait of Madisonville, Louisiana, and its surrounding lowland landscape on the northern shore of Lake Pontchartrain. At 1:24,000 scale, the map captures the intimate geography of a community shaped by water: the broad presence of the lake to the south, the sinuous Tchefuncte River, the Little Tchefuncte River, ponds, marshy margins, and drainage patterns that define settlement and movement. The quadrangle records Madisonville at a revealing moment in the late twentieth century, when older rural and riverine patterns coexisted with expanding roads, neighborhoods, and commercial corridors. Its precise symbols and measured contours transform a familiar Louisiana townscape into a layered historical document of terrain, infrastructure, and change.

The United States Geological Survey brought to this map the institutional rigor that made its quadrangles essential references for engineers, planners, geologists, hikers, and historians. Founded in the nineteenth century to systematically study and chart the nation’s lands and resources, the USGS developed a cartographic language prized for accuracy and consistency. In the “Madisonville Quadrangle,” that language is immediately recognizable: clean black linework for roads, buildings, and boundaries; blue for lakes, streams, and ponds; green for wooded or vegetated areas; and contour lines that quietly describe the subtle relief of coastal Louisiana. The result is both technical and elegant, a disciplined composition in which every symbol serves a purpose, yet the whole map reads as a finely balanced view of land and water.

Madisonville’s setting gives the map much of its historical interest. Situated along the Tchefuncte River near Lake Pontchartrain, the town has long been associated with river traffic, fishing, timber, boatbuilding, and access to the lake basin. The mapped waterways suggest why this place developed where it did: the river provided a natural corridor inland, while Lake Pontchartrain connected the region to broader Gulf Coast networks. Roads and bridges shown across the quadrangle reveal how twentieth-century transportation increasingly overlaid these older water routes. The interplay between river bends, wooded tracts, cultivated parcels, and emerging residential districts evokes a community negotiating the transition from rural waterfront settlement to a more suburban and recreational landscape tied to greater southeastern Louisiana.

The map’s topographic character is especially compelling because the terrain is understated rather than dramatic. In place of towering mountains or steep escarpments, the “Madisonville Quadrangle” records slight changes in elevation, wet ground, drainage channels, and the careful placement of roads and buildings amid low-lying land. Lake Pontchartrain anchors the southern reaches, while the Tchefuncte and Little Tchefuncte rivers thread through forested and developed areas. Ponds, agricultural parcels, rail lines, highways, and neighborhood layouts appear as part of a broader environmental pattern. The light green vegetation tint contrasts beautifully with white open land and blue water bodies, making legible the mosaic of forest, settlement, wetlands, and cleared ground characteristic of Louisiana’s northshore landscape.

As a historical record, this quadrangle offers a valuable snapshot of land use around Madisonville during a period of increasing development. Marked residential districts, commercial areas, transportation lines, recreational spaces, and parcels of agricultural land point to the varied pressures reshaping the region in the decades after World War II. Comparing the mapped landscape to the area today would reveal changes in shoreline use, suburban expansion, ecological management, and the growth of communities along Lake Pontchartrain’s north shore. Yet the map also preserves continuities: the commanding role of water, the persistence of wooded land, and the enduring importance of the Tchefuncte River as Madisonville’s defining feature. It is a sophisticated cartographic witness to place, memory, and environmental transformation.

Cities, towns and places on this map

• Madisonville, LA
• Lake Pontchartrain
• Tchefuncte River
• Little Tchefuncte River
• Areas of forested land
• Various roads, including major highways
• Railroads
• Neighborhoods, including marked developments
• Water bodies and pond areas
• Agricultural lands and parcels
• Parks and recreational areas
• Residential districts
• Commercial areas

Historical context & cartographic details

• Produced by the US Geological Survey
• Historical 1:24,000 topographical map
• Dated 1968 with a 1980 imprint
• Uses clear, detailed line work to highlight natural terrain and human-made structures with distinct symbols
• Features elevation contours, water bodies, transportation lines, and land use details
• Uses light greens for vegetation and darker shades for other mapped features, typical of USGS topographical maps
• Color contrasts green vegetative areas with white land areas and blue water bodies
• Documents land use and development patterns from the late 1960s
• Reflects urbanization trends and ecological changes in and around Madisonville since the late 20th century

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.