OpenHistoricalMap/Resources

This page provides a list of resources that may be of value to historic mappers. Things listed here should have licenses that permit use for Open Data projects. Items found within the list are mainly Maps but could also contain Drawings, Images, Moving Images, Text, Records, Series, and Virtual Collections

Comprehensive resources

OldMapsOnline A directory to over 400,000 maps in different repositories around the world. Each repository may have different rights and licenses associated.	Europeana Europeana brings together resources from memory institutions in Europe. With over 200,000 maps it is a comprehensive resource.

World

General

• Category:Old Maps on Wikimedia Commons
• Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin > Karten > Online-Angebote
• Ibero-Amerikanisches Institut > Sammlungen > Historische Karten
• Harvard Geospatial Library > Access : Public
• Gustav Droysen - Allgemeiner historischer Handatlas in 96 Karten
• Sammlung Ryhiner (UB Bern)
• Karten der Bibliothèque national de France
• GeoGreif der Uni Greifswald
• digi-Hub > Kartografie (UB Humboldt Uni) (143 Maps)
• UB Wien > Sammlung > Karten und Atlanten (7.705 Maps)

Satellite and aerial Imagery

Several imagery sources are listed by default for ID and JOSM. We are currently working on clarifying whether they can be used for mapping in OHM (Github ticket). The use cases for modern imagery are limited but there are times when they can be valuable. The status of each provider is listed below:

Main article: OpenHistoricalMap/Imagery

• Mapbox - OHM has permission
• ESRI World Imagery - discussions are positive and ongoing, but not yet resolved
• Bing - working on it

America

National

• ghostsofdc.org - Ghosts of DC
• allmaps.org - AllMaps Project
• Online Guide to U.S. Map Collections
• US National Archives
• US Post Office locations
• US Census Enumeration Maps
• Library of Congress

Satellite and aerial imagery

• USGS Earth Explorer - library of digitized aerial photographs of the US in the 20th century

Geological maps

• United States Geological Survey Historical Maps online
• National Mine Map Repository - US Department of the Interior

Map collections

• Sanborn Maps - (USA) Detailed fire insurance maps are out of copyright over 97 years old from Library of Congress
  See also: Sanborn Map geoferencing
  • oldinsurancemaps.net - Adam Cox’s Sanborn Maps project
• Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection (UTexas)
• David Rumsey Map collection

Topographical maps

• USGS Topo View - topographic maps of the US. Government produced/public domain

Alabama

• Alabama Maps from the University of Alabama

Kentucky

• Kentucky City Database – Kentucky Land Office database containing dates of incorporation and boundary changes
• Ohio & Kentucky maps from Cincinnati & Hamilton County Public Library

Massachusetts

Boston

• Boston Public Library Leventhal Map & Education Center - provides many georeferenced maps

New York

• NYPL Map and Atlas Collection - NYPL uses mapwarper so TMS URLs are available for each geo-referenced map. Much of the NYPL collection comes up using Old Maps Online (see above)

North Carolina

• North Carolina Maps provides a large number of historic maps of NC from the State Archives of North Carolina, the North Carolina Collection at UNC-Chapel Hill, and the Outer Banks History Center. The maps are not georeferenced.

Ohio

• Ohio & Kentucky maps from Cincinnati & Hamilton County Public Library
• Cincinnati historical maps from the University of Cincinnati

Washington

• Washington State Archives - Washington State Archives - Digital Archives - Secretary of State
• Legacy Washington

Wisconsin

Milwaukee

• UWM Libraries Digital Collections > Browse all collections > Type : Cartographic images + maps

Asia

Vietnam

• South Vietnam: Official Standard Names Approved by the United States Board on Geographic Names – place names during the Vietnam War / prior to reunification, with coordinates

Europe

General

• Housetrails (Baugeschichte) – building histories in Austria and Germany, permission to cite
• europeana > Thema > Karte

France

• Inrap (institut national de recherches archeologiques préventives) -
• https://remonterletemps.ign.fr/telecharger - historical aerial imagery and maps, the images from the "télécharger" (download) section can be used
• POP : la plateforme ouverte du patrimoine

Germany

• Resources/Germany

The Netherlands

• topotijdreis.nl - historic maps, non-commercial open data license
• code.waag.org/buildings/ - buildings and addresses, non-commercial open data license

United Kingdom

See also: National Library of Scotland

Edinburgh

• Georeferenced maps of Edinburgh, NLS (TMS, WMS)

Switzerland

• Kartenportal.ch > Suche starten > Attribute > nur gescannte Karten anzeigen

Poland

• Mapster
• Cartography (Baltic Digital Library)
• Cartographic Materials (UB Wroclaw)

North America

Canada

• Library and Archives Canada

• City of Toronto Toronto Open Data

See also

• Images of early maps on the web
• Historical Map Web Sites