Category: Maps

Tracks West: Railroad and migration maps for you

~ Dayna Jacobs - "On Granny's Trail" ~ 1 Comment

I like to collect maps to help in my research and often create maps to suit my needs.  Today I am posting a few maps that help in my understanding of migration into the western states.  Every western states researcher should have a sound understanding of migration routes, railroads, and rivers that affected the movement of emigrants and influenced settling patterns.  You can create your own maps using templates found at www.nationalatlas.gov by looking under “printable maps”.

Here is a map I marked with the major overland migration routes west, with key cities or forts that were either stopping points or final destinations. Continue reading “Tracks West: Railroad and migration maps for you” →

Google Earth and time travel

~ Dayna Jacobs - "On Granny's Trail" ~ 7 Comments

Pick a date.  Now pick a state. Pick a date and a state and I will show you the state and county boundaries on that exact date using Google Earth.   I know you’ve heard of Google Earth and have probably used it.  You may have heard of the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries (AHCB) and, if so, have probably used it.  Have you used them both TOGETHER?  Until today I didn’t know it was possible.  Very cool! Continue reading “Google Earth and time travel” →

Historical Map Archive: How come I didn’t know about you sooner??

~ Dayna Jacobs - "On Granny's Trail" ~ 3 Comments

How come I didn’t know about the Historical Map Archive sooner? It is a collection of online maps from various Alabama repositories which is simple to use, and has a wide variety of historical maps for the whole world. It is found at the University of Alabama website at http://alabamamaps.ua.edu/historicalmaps/.

Maybe word got around about the awesome University of Texas map site and a rivalry was born. You know there is more to these Southern rivalries than football.

I was interested to see what it offered in the Western States region, and was happy to see it is possible to search by individual state or individual region.   Continue reading “Historical Map Archive: How come I didn’t know about you sooner??” →

A Few Interesting Timeline and Map sites

~ Dayna Jacobs - "On Granny's Trail" ~ Leave a comment

I’m posting links to a few animated maps and timelines, and mapping sites with a twist, like the U.S. History Primary Source Timeline, America’s Best History Timeline, World History Timeline, New York Times Immigration Explorer,  History Pin, and Timeline of Events in the West, There are lots of these kinds of timelines out there (just do a search in any browser), so find one you like and put it in your genealogy toolkit–handy sites that help you organize and interpret your research.

Having a historical timeline in your toolkit will help you understand the events that affected your ancestors’ lives, and can give you clues about what kinds of records to search.  Was there a war going on? Did the creation of a territory provide opportunity for free land?  Did world events stimulate immigration from certain countries?

Along with historical timelines for the nation, consider finding or creating state and county timelines, and always create a timeline for a family.  That should be one of the first things you do as you begin your research, but it can also be something that will help you when you are well down the road in your research and may have come to a dead end.

Integrate your family timeline with county, state, and national timelines and you may be surprised at the new ideas that emerge for your research.

TIP:  Keep your genealogy toolkit handy by creating a “Toolkit” folder on the “favorites” or “bookmark bar” in your internet browser, or create a  “Toolkit” folder in the Evernote program.

Friday Finds: Nevada in Maps – topographical, mining, historical, and Sanborn fire insurance maps

~ Dayna Jacobs - "On Granny's Trail" ~ Leave a comment

Those of you researching in Nevada will be excited to discover “Nevada in Maps” online, through the University of Nevada, Reno.  This database is available on the Nevada Historical Society‘s website under “digital collections.”

Take your pick from topographical, Sanborn fire insurance, mining, historical, highway, and state land plats:

If you have never seen a Sanborn fire insurance map you are in for a treat.  You can see the details of every block in a city, like this 1885 map of downtown Carson City:

Notice the Opera house, wagon shop, millinery, candy store, tailor, and barber, among other shops.  In residential areas the homes and outbuildings can be seen, and you can see every nook and cranny of your ancestor’s neighborhood.

Sanborn fire insurance maps are available for other states and cities, but can sometimes be hard to access online.  This Nevada collection is a real find!

Check out the Library of Congress  Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps Online Checklist .  The L.O.C. has over 675,000 sheets of Sanborn maps!  Those that are out of copyright (printed before January 1st, 1923) are scanned and available online via links in the checklist.

To find a Sanborn map for a town or city that is not available online at the Library of Congress, just Google it.  You may have access through a state library or university collection, or through a terrific website like “Nevada in Maps.”