Where to begin?
When you are starting to use maps in your research, it is important that you have these three questions answered before searching the catalog.
- What location do I want to see?
- What data do I want on the map?
- Remember: Different types of map will give different types of information.
- What date(s) am I interested in?
By knowing these answers, you will be able to narrow your research and have success when searching our catalogs. You can learn how to utilize the answers to these research questions in the tab Searching the Catalogs.
Once you narrow your research and have successfully found a map, remember that there are going to be two ways that you can gather information:
- observing details on a map
- analyzing the map beyond its "surface" details
What data do I want on a map?
While maps are typically known as materials to get us from "Point A to Point B," it is important to realize that not all maps look the same, and not all maps have the same type of data.
As such, before you start observing and analyzing a map, it is important to know the many different types of maps that you can come across in your research. See below for a few examples:
- Political Maps: Show boundary lines between countries
- Climate Maps: Showcases the climate of locations
- Pictorial Maps: Shows an illustrative representation of a location
- Topographical Maps: Highlights the topography, or the shape of the land, in a location
Click through the tabs, to see how the same data or same locations can be represented in a radically different manner!
Take a look at the two maps below. Both are depicting temperature and climatic zones of the world, but are being portrayed in drastically different ways.
While the map on the left is printed on a Mercator projection, the map on the right is printed on a planisphere (also known as a star chart).
![[Left Image]: Isothermal chart, or, View of climates & productions, 1823 [Right Image] The Earth's Western planisphere., 1757](https://libapps.s3.amazonaws.com/accounts/313473/images/temperature.PNG)
[Left Image]: Isothermal chart, or, View of climates & productions, 1823
[Right Image] The Earth's Western planisphere., 1757
When you look at both maps below, you will see that they geographically cover the same area: the Hudson River Valley. However, the data that you pull is radically different. The map on the left is a pictorial map. These maps are more illustrative, and often would provide cultural context on what people are considering important in relation to the map's theme. Meanwhile, the map on the right is a topographical map. This sort of map indicates the shape of the land and divulges to the viewer a better understanding of land surfaces.
[Left Image]: Romance map of the Hudson River Valley, 1937
Click the tabs, to learn how to observe and analyze a map!
When looking at a map, it is important to observe visual details. By interpreting these visual details, you will be able to better understand the visual data that a map is presenting you with.
When observing a map, some questions you can ask yourself are:
- Where is it located?
- Why is it there?
- What is the significance of the location?
- What is this place like?
- With what is it associated with?
- What are the consequences of its location and associations?
- What would life look like, walking down the street at this time?
- What is the general population (business vs residential)?
- What did buildings look like (what materials were used)?
Using the questions above, let us take a look at the example below, and see what details we can observe.
![Manhattan, V. 4, Double Page Plate No. 78 [Map bounded by East 47th St., 2nd Ave., East 42nd St., Vanderbilt Ave.], 1899](https://libapps.s3.amazonaws.com/accounts/313473/images/What_questions_can_a_map_answer.PNG)
Where is it located?
When looking at the address, you will realize that the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building sits where the "Discontinued Reservoir" is notated.
What is the significance of the location?
You will notice there is a Presbyterian Church notated on the map. Often, people who followed a specific faith would live near the church of their denomination. This is especially useful to note, when doing genealogy or building research,
What would life look like, walking down the street at this time?
Surface tracks of the 4th Avenue Surface Railway indicate a form of transportation that the neighborhood most likely used to commute around the city.
What did buildings look like (what materials were used)?
The various colors on the map indicate different types of buildings and their uses. Blue signifies warehouses, pink indicates dwellings, green signifies special hazards buildings (often businesses). Markings (o vs. x) will indicate what type of materials were used for the building, and the heights of buildings are also notated.
When reviewing a map, it is important to remember that a map exists in wider cultural contexts. As such, it is imperative to think beyond the map, and analyze what the map represents of the society in which it was made and the perspectives that result in this depiction of an area.
Library of Congress has created a great list to get started, called Teacher's Guide" Analyzing Maps.
In the meantime, use the following questions to help you start analyzing maps for your research.
Who:
- made this map?
- is the map's audience?
- is left out?
What:
- information is the focus/"main idea"?
- is the purpose of the map?
When:
- was the map published vs. initially surveyed, and does this cause discrepenicies?
- What is significance of the date?
Where:
- could people access this map, in the past?
Why:
- was it made?
How:
- was the map made?
- can I supplement the map with other materials?
Using the questions above, let us take a look at the example below, and see what details we can analyze.![Manhattan, V. 4, Double Page Plate No. 78 [Map bounded by East 47th St., 2nd Ave., East 42nd St., Vanderbilt Ave.] and Title Page, 1899](https://libapps.s3.amazonaws.com/accounts/313473/images/analyze_this.PNG)
Why was it made?
This atlas was created by the Sanborn Insurance Company (then known as the Sanborn-Perris Map Company). Insurance companies had a financial stake in ensuring accurate and detailed depictions of the city - this resulted in continuous publications that strived for precision.
Who made the map?
The creator was credited as Sanborn-Perris Map Company. The Sanborn Map Company actually took over the Perris Map Company-a sign of the monopoly that Sanborn Map Company would soon have over the fire insurance market.
Where could you find these plates?
Theses insurance maps did not exist solo, but were in larger atlases. Using an index, the numbers indicate which “plate” to look at.
What is the significance of the published year?
NYC consolidated with all the boroughs into one city, in 1898. As such, depictions of "New York City" would start to change to include all five boroughs.
How can supplement this map with other materials?
These maps are indicative of streets and businesses that were in various neighborhoods. The Irma and Paul Milstein Division of United States History, Local History and Genealogy has digitized their New York City Directories. These can be used to gain deeper insight into these businesses.
What is the significance of the area?
The "Dis-used Reservoir" was previously the Croton Reservoir. This area served both as a promenade and as how New Yorkers received clean drinking water during the 19th century.