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Genealogy Research with Maps: HOME

A guide to using maps available at The New York Public Library and elsewhere for genealogy research.

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Genealogists seek records that describe names, places, and dates. Maps describe places and their names at a given point in time and, sometimes, even record the names of people. Unsurprisingly, then, maps are very useful tools for genealogists.

The New York Public Library Lionel Pincus and Princess Firyal Map Division is home to thousands of sheet maps and atlases published between the 16th and 21st centuries. The collections range in scale from global to local, and support the learning and research needs of a wide variety of users. Many of those maps have been digitized and made available through NYPL Digital Collections.

This research guide describes some of the ways those maps can be used for genealogical research. 

Map of property in the town of Flatbush, Kings County, N.Y.  belonging to N.B. Kukurk 1893

Map of property in the town of Flatbush, Kings County, N.Y. : belonging to N.B. Kukuck, 1893 (NYPL Digital Collections)