This wartime photograph, labeled “SECRET”, provides a spy plane’s view of Isle of Hope. While there is no residential development in Wymberley or Paxton Heights in 1942, there is cleared land on north Isle of Hope that is the start of a new subdivision. Isle of Hope’s Skidaway River waterfront is lined with docks and looks very active. It does not appear to be a “No Wake Zone” in the 1940s. Barbee’s operations are clearly visible with the diving tower reaching skyward.
The Skidaway Road and LaRoche Avenue causeways can be seen cutting through the surrounding marsh as well as the streetcar causeway reaching from Central Avenue towards Norwood. Roads and clearings on Wormsloe among its densely wooded forests. The rest of Isle of Hope is also densely wooded. Away from the Bluff, the greatest areas of clearing are on northern Isle of Hope. That will change in the coming years. (Special Thanks to Forrest Willoughby)