Maps and Geospatial Imagery: Map Collections
Library of Congress Collections
The Library of Congress (LOC) has a large collection of maps that are accessible online, including General Maps, Civil War and other military maps, Sanborn Insurance Maps, Railroad Maps, Discovery and Exploration, and National Parks, among many others.
- Library of Congress Map CollectionsThe list of LOC Collections with maps.
- LOC General MapsThis category includes maps that typically portray the physical environment and a variety of cultural elements for a geographic area at a particular point in time. The maps in this category show a geographic area larger than a city or town and do not display a subject that is part of one of the thematic categories.
- LOC National ParksThis collection documents the history, cultural aspects and geological formations of areas that eventually became National Parks. The collection consists of approximately 200 maps dating from the 17th century to the present, reflecting early mapping of the areas that would become four National Parks, as well as the parks themselves. Production of this collection is being supported by a generous gift from The Rockefeller Foundation.
- LOC Sanborn MapsThe Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps Online Checklist provides a searchable database of the fire insurance maps published by the Sanborn Map Company housed in the collections of the Geography and Map Division. The online checklist is based upon the Library's 1981 publication Fire Insurance Maps in the Library of Congress and will be continually updated to reflect new acquisitions.
- LOC Discovery and Explorationhis category documents the discovery and exploration with both manuscripts and published maps. Many of these maps reflect the European Age of Discoveries, dating from the late 15th century to the 17th century when Europeans were concerned primarily with determining the outline of the continents as they explored and mapped the coastal areas and the major waterways. Also included are 18th and 19th century maps documenting the exploration and mapping of the interior parts of the continents, reflecting the work of Lewis and Clark and subsequent government explorers and surveyors.
- LOC Transportation and Communication MapsThese maps document the development and status of transportation and communication systems on the national, state, and local level. Transportation maps can depict canal and river systems, cycling routes , railway lines and systems, roads and road networks, and traffic patterns. Communication maps illustrate the location and distribution of telegraph routes, telephone systems and radio coverage.
- LOC Military Battles and CampaignsThis category contains maps showing campaigns of major military conflicts, including troop movements, defensive structures, and groundworks, roads to and from sites of military engagements, campsites, and local buildings, topography, and vegetation.
- World War II Military Situation MapsThis collection contains maps showing troop positions beginning on June 6, 1944 to July 26, 1945.
- LOC Civil War MapsBrings together materials from three premier collections: the Library of Congress Geography and Map Division, the Virginia Historical Society, and the Library of Virginia.
General Online Map Collections
- Online Guide To US Map CollectionsThe Online Guide to U.S. Map Collections is a directory of map collections, big and small, across the United States.
- David Rumsey Map CollectionOver 10,000 images. Rare 18th- and 19th-century maps of North and South America. The world, Europe, Asia and Africa are also represented. Note: browser must be able to allow pop-up windows.
- Map Collections: 1500 to PresentDigital images of maps of the Geography and Map Division of the Library of Congress. Featured are Americana and cartographic treasures of the Library. Also available are copyright free contemporary maps of countries and regions of the world.
- Perry-Castañeda Library Map CollectionJPEG, GIF, and PDF map images, at the University of Texas at Austin Library. Many of the maps were originally produced by federal government agencies.
- Scanned Maps from the Harvard CollectionThousands of the Harvard Map Collection's maps and atlases from around the world are available online in hi-res.
- New York Public Library CollectionThe New York Public libraries map and atlas collection online
- American Geographical Society Library Digital Map CollectionThe American Geographical Society Library Digital Map Collection contains over 14000 maps, ranging from early maps of Asia to historical maps of Wisconsin and Milwaukee, and other American cities, states, and national parks. The digital collection is under continuing development
- The British Library Map Collection OnlineOne of the largest collections of maps, plans, and topographical views in the world, numbering some 4.5 million, with a chronological spread of over 2,000 years.
Maps with a Theme
This collection of online maps focuses on an issue, event, or theme that encompasses everything from racism, culture, and environmental issues to politics.
- The LOTR Project
Lord of the Rings Project, commonly shortened LotrProject, is a creative web project dedicated to the works of J.R.R. Tolkien. It is perhaps most known for the extensive and ever updating genealogy, the historical timeline of Middle-Earth and the statistics of the population of Middle-Earth. - Mapping Inequality Redlining in New Deal America
Mapping Inequality brings one of the country's most important archives to the public. HOLC's documents contain a wealth of information about how government officials, lenders, and real estate interests surveyed and ensured the economic health of American cities. And with the help of ongoing research, we continue to learn at what cost such measures were realized. - PERSUASIVE CARTOGRAPHY The PJ Mode Collection
This is a collection of “persuasive” cartography: more than 800 maps intended primarily to influence opinions or beliefs - to send a message - rather than to communicate geographic information. - Mapping History
The Mapping History Project has been designed to provide interactive and animated representations of fundamental historical problems and/or illustrations of historical events, developments, and dynamics.
