Map and Geography Library

Map and Geography Library
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Web Links

Aerial Photography & Remote Sensing

Aerial Photography Field Office, USDA (Salt Lake City): Sells photography flown by USDA agencies from 1955 to the present including NHAP and NAPP. Order prints directly from office; order forms and pricing information available at site.
Cartographic Archives and Architectural Division, National Archives and Records Administration: Holds pre-1955 USDA photography plus early photographs from other Federal agencies and photography taken during World War One and Two. Users must consult with Archives staff to determine material availablity then order reproductions through private vendors.
EROS Data Center (Sioux Falls, SD): Houses and distributes remotely-sensed data, NHAP and NAPP photography, and USGS digital cartographic data. Use EarthExplorer, PhotoFinder, and MapFinder to determine product availabity.
USGS Photo Library Archive

A small sample, less than 10%, of photographs from the USGS collection. Mostly obliques.

Illinois Digital Orthophoto Quadrangles

Some DOQs available for free download

Digital Illinois Historial Aerial Photography

Scans of pre-1942 photographs. State coverage not yet completed.

Aerial photography at the Illinois Department of Natural Resources

The Remote Sensing Core Curriculum

USGS air photo information

Includes factsheets, FAQs, and sample photographs

NOAA Satellites

Online Guide to Remote Sensing

Part of the WW2010 project at the UIUC Department of Atmospheric Sciences

Remote Sensing Tutorial

"A training manual for learning the role of space science and technology for using remote sensing to monitor planetary bodies and distant stars and galaxies." Initially developed for the Applied Information Science Branch of the Goddard Space Flight Center and underwritten by the Air Force Academy. "Image intensive."

Canda Centre for Remote Sensing

Includes tutorial in "Education & Reference" section and "image tour" of Canada in "Images and Data Services" section plus information on ordering data and links to other Canadian resource sources.

EROS Data Center Image Gallery

Remotely sensed images. Images in "Earth as Art" section can be downloaded free through FTP

Terraserver

USGS air photos and topographic maps. Sponsored by Microsoft.

Dictionaries

Geographical Dictionary: Part of The Geography Portal, Kesgrave High School, Ipswich, England.
Dictionary of Abbreviations and Acronyms in Geographic Information Systems, Cartography, and Remote Sensing: From UC Berkeley Library Web
Glossary of Cartographic Terms: From Maps for America and hosted by U Texas, Perry-Casteñeda Library
Glossary of GIS Terms: Online version of ESRI's Dictionary of GIS Terminology.
AGI GIS Dictionary: From the Association for Geographic Information.

Encyclopedias and Almanacs

Background Notes: Country information from the Department of State including human and physical geography, economy, government, history, etc.
Country Studies: Prepared by the Federal Research Division of the Library of Congress under the Country Studies/Area Handbook Program.
The World Factbook: Includes information on countries of the world. The content of this site focuses on current statistical data with emphasis on economy, government, transportation, geography, and social environment. Appendices and general reference maps are also included.
Statistical Abstract of the United States: Scanned version of the venerable print product. Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Encyclopedia of Chicago

Geography Networks, Blogs and Internet Indexes

Cartographic Reference Resources: Including map projections and map scales - organized by the map library at the University of Texas at Austin
Infomine: Scholarly Internet Resource Collections: Maps & GIS: University of California System
Geography Arena: Maintained by the Taylor & Francis Publishing Group; primarily a T&F marketing tool but some useful links under Related Resources.
Geography.About Com
Oddens' Bookmarks: The Fascinating World of Maps and Mapping: Over 21,500 links to cartography-related sites.
Geography at Yahoo
GIS.com: Sponsored by ESRI. Basic information about geographic information systems. Includes links to informational websites and free data resources.
Social Science Information Gateway (SOSIG): Part of the UK Resource Discovery Network.
The Map Room: Blog about finding maps, map collections, and maps on the web.
Mapping Hacks: Blog by the authors of Mapping Hacks.
Google Maps Mania: Blog that tracks the influence of Google maps on websites, maps, and software tools.
GeoCarta: Blog about mapping and land use.
All Points Blog: Blog sponsored by Directions Magazine.
Cartography: Canadian Cartographic Association's blog.
CartoTalk: An international forum for cartography professionals discussing all things cartographic including GIS, job postings, design solutions, software applications, interactive mapping, and what's hot in cartography.

Gazetteers

Place Name Sites: From the Arizona State University Libraries Map Collection.
Canadian Geographical Names: From the Canadian Board on Geographic Names, Natural Resources Canada.
Columbia Gazetteer: Extensive, encyclopedic world gazetteer. UIUC access only.
GEOnet Names Server: Gazetteer of foreign geographic feature names
Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names: World place names primarily from the field of art history
Oddens' Bookmarks links to gazetteers: Links to over 1200 online gazetteer sites.
Shtetl Seeker: Web version of Where We Once Walked
U.S. Gazetteer: U.S. Census Bureau
U.S. Geographic Names Information System - GNIS: USGS database allows searching on U.S. geographic places by specific variables including elevation and population range (will give latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates)

Geospatial Data Sources
Many US government agencies are distributing data via the Web. Check out the links at the LIS 424 Resource Page.

Starting the Hunt: "Guide to Mostly On-Line and Mostly Free U.S. Geospatial and Attribute Data" compiled at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Center for Advanced Spatial Technologies.
Geography Network: Includes links to downloadable data, including the United States 2000 Census, and maps.
Digital Chart of the World Server: Federal data served by the Pennsylvania State University Libraries.
Natural Earth: Freely downloadable land cover and shaded relief data, worldwide coverage. Created from NASA data; graphically enhanced by the National Park Service. Web site and data access courtesy of Tom Patterson.
National Historical Geographic Information System: Aggregate census information for the United States between 1790 and 2000.
The National Map
Geospatial One-Stop Portal
National Elevation Dataset: Digital Elevation Model (DEM) data updated bi-monthly.
Seamless Data Distribution System
Federal Geospatial Data Clearinghouse
Illinois Natural History Survey Data Clearinghouse: Includes 1:24K, 1:100K, and 1:250K DRGs for free download.
Champaign County Spatial Data Catalog (CCSDC)
USGS Geographic Data Download
US Bureau of the Census: Check "American Factfinder" for quick statistics and population data; download Census geography in print or digital format from Geography section.
EPA Databases and Software
Manual of Federal Geographic Data Products: No data here but information about ordering a paper product describing Federal data sources.
National Center for Geographic Information and Analysis (NCGIA)
Africa Data Dissemination Service (ADDS): Part of USAID's FEWS project.

Illinois Agencies

IllinoisAtlas.com: A project of the Data & Mapping Services Division of the Center for Governmental Studies at Northern Illinois University
Topographic map index for Illinois: From ISGS -- includes "sketch" of topographic quadranges showing major features.
Illinois Natural Resources Geospatial Data Clearing House: Free downloadable data -- historic air photos, digital orthophoto quarter quadrangles (DOQ), digital raster graphics (DRG), geologic quadrangle data (IGQ)
Enjoy Illinois!: Illinois Department of Commerce and Community Affairs. Features "Trip Planner" and other presentations
Illinois Department of Natural Resources: Information on parks, environment, and recreation
IDOT - Illinois Department of Transportation: Click on "Traveling Public" for links to highway map, road construction information, and information about obtaining IDOT maps.
Illinois Natural History Survey
Illinois State Climatologist Office
Illinois State Geological Survey
Illinois State Library
Illinois State Library Map Collection
State of Illinois Home Page
Illinois State Police Crime Data/Maps
Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission: Maps, photos, and data for the 6-county Chicago metropolitan area.

University of Illinois and Urbana-Champaign Area

UIUC Campus Map
UIUC Library Units
UIUC Main Page
Department of Atmospheric Sciences
Department of Geography
Department of Geology
Department of Urban and Regional Planning
Geographic Modeling Systems Laboratory

Maps

An Atlas of Cyberspaces: An atlas of maps and graphic representations of the geographies of the new electronic territories of the Internet, WWW and other emerging Cyberspaces
CIA and more at the University of Texas at Austin: Very large selection of scanned maps of all regions of the world, large selection of maps of U.S. and foreign cities, and over 300 U.S. maps including maps of national parks, monuments and historic sites - courtesy of the map library at the University of Texas at Austin (look for "electronic maps"). Also includes links to sites for creation of maps of specific areas and for determining driving itineraries, maps, cultural geography, weather, etc. Well organized.
NOAA Online Chart Viewer
The Electronic Map Library: Maps of 1990 Census data for the United States and major metropolitan areas (including Chicago). Developed primarily by William Bowen, Department of Geography, California State University Northridge.
National Atlas of the United States -- 1970: Scanned maps and text from the 1970 print National Atlas. Part of the Library of Congress' American Memory site. Allows zooming and panning. Also includes images from national atlases of the United States from 1870, 1880, and 1890.
National Geographic Society - "Map Machine": A variety of different kinds of maps are available. Use this site to keep your print NGS World Atlas up to date.
Topozone: Scanned USGS topos at all scales
United Nations Cartographic Section: General maps plus maps for peacekeeping mission areas
UNEP/GRID-Arendal Maps and Graphics Library: 15 years of maps and other graphics produced on environmental themes; includes static and interactive graphics.
World Factbook from the CIA: Information on countries: human and physical geography, economy, government, defence, trade, etc. - individual entries for countries include maps. Scans at the University of Texas at Austin site (link above) are of higher quality
Global Earth History: Click on Popular Departmental Links to view palaeo-geographic continent locations, the product of continental drift.
The Great Globe Gallery: Hundreds of versions of the globe. Links open in a new window.
Gallery of Map Projections: Black-and-white PDFs of map projections as illustrated in two classic texts.
UC Atlas of Global Inequality: Project of the UC-Santa Cruz Center for Global, International and Regional Studies (CGIRS. Includes maps, graphs, and downloadable data.

Historical Maps

Historical Maps Online: View a selection of scanned maps from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Map & Geography Library and the Rare Book and Special Collections Library.
Illinois Federal Township Plats (1804-1891): Scans of 3,457 plats in the collection of the Illinois State Archives that were surveyed by the office of the U.S. Surveyor General and the General Land Office.
1895 U.S. Atlas
Historic USGS Quadrangles: New project begun summer 2005 to scan and make available through the Web maps that were created using lithographic processes and distributed on paper by the US Geological Survey. No images available yet.
Historical Maps of the World: From the Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection
American Memory -- Library of Congress: Entry point to collections of scanned maps from the Library of Congress Geography and Map Division.
Panoramic Maps, 1847-1929: Part of the Library of Congress American Memory site. Scanned maps of cities in the U.S. and Canada. Can zoom in on the images to see quite a bit of detail. Most images are listed in Panormaic Maps of Cities in the United States and Canada, second edition (1984), by John R. Hébert and Patrick E. Dempsey
Historical Map and Chart Collection: Scans of charts in the Office of the Coast Survey's Historical Collection. Includes Mississippi River survey 1868-1880. View on screen or download files.
David Rumsey Historical Map Collection: 18th and 19th century cartographic items for the entire world with specific focus on North and South America. More than 3000 images.
Dr. John Snow's London, 1859: John Snow determined the source of a 1854 cholora outbreak in London by linking cases to a common source of drinking water -- an early medical geographer.
Images of Early Maps on the Web: Extensive listing of sites of scans of old maps; primarily arranged geographically. Part of the "Map History" site.
Historic European City Maps: Scans of 15th through early 17th century maps; often multiple images for each city.
National Maritime Museum Charts and Maps: Charts from the collection at the National Maritime Museum and Royal Observatory, Greenwich, England.
Ancient Maps of Jerusalem: Maps of Jerusalem dating between 1200 and 1930 from the collections of the Jewish National and University Library and The Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Interactive Maps

Excite Maps: Interactive maps, United States - view customized maps upon request,or view scanned maps (from MapQuest) of areas outside the U.S.
Google Earth: Download free Google Earth
Google Maps: Also known as Google Local
Infospace.com: Maps and driving instructions
Map24.com: Maps and driving directions for US, Canada, and Europe
MapBlast: Create and embed your own interactive map
MapQuest: Search on US and non-US addresses for maps and driving instructions.
Maps On Us: "Navigation Made Simple.....All Across the United States" -- maps and routes.
Maporama: Create maps of cities worldwide.
Multimap: "Online maps to everywhere."
Yahoo! Maps: Link to Yahoo's interactive mapping resource
Tiger MappingService - U.S. Census Bureau: Interactive maps, United States - view customized maps upon request
United States -- National Atlas: Includes maps and downloadable data describing the United States
USGS Tapestry of Time and Terrain: Geologic map draped over terrain model.
National Atlas of Canada Online
Globalis -- an interactive world map: Created by a collaboration of UN organizations

Outline Maps

About Geography.Com
Houghton Mifflin Social Studies Center
National Geographic Xpeditions: Select Atlas to go to maps. GIF or PDF images
Scott Foresman

History of Cartography

Map History/History of Cartography: Compiled by Tony Campbell, Map Librarian, British Library
History of Cartography Project: University of Wisconsin, Department of Geography project published by University of Chicago Press
Globes of the 20th Century: Information on world globes produced between 1900 and 1960 with a focus on American globe producers.
MapHist-L: Listserv discussion group on historic cartographic items includes librarians, historians, cartographers among its subscribers.
Antique Maps: Full text of the 3rd edition of Moreland and Bannister's work.
Ptolemy and His Geography: Site under development. Information on Ptolemy's life and major works.
Realms of Gold: Online catalog of maps held by the American Philosophical Society Library in Philadelphia.
Road Maps: Includes scanned covers for areas worldwide and links to other road map sites.
Road Map Collectors Association: Includes information on official state highway maps, commercially produced maps, and publisher date codes.
MapHist.Com: Open information project for map history -- includes dictionary of mapmakers and glossary of terms.

Tools

Great Circle Distance Calculator: Calculate distances using great circles, NOT road distances!
Decimal Degrees to Degrees, Minutes, and Seconds: Converts between decimal degrees and degrees/minutes/seconds and back again
Coordinate Conversion: Converts latitude/longitude to UTM and UTM to latitude/longitude. From Natural Resources Canada
Sunrise/Sunset: Calculate tables of sunrise/set, moonrise/set and other astronomical events
Map Date Codes: Compiled by Phil Hoehn; part of the WAML Map Librarian's Toolbox.
Map Cataloging Manual (LC G&M): Sponsored online by The Library Corporation as part of the "Cataloger's Reference Shelf."
Map Cataloging: A set of cataloging tools created or linked to by Terry Reese, Oregon State University.
Mathematical Data for Bibliographic Descriptions of Cartographic Materials and Spatial Data: Conversions, definitions, and source materials for bar scales, measurements, prime meridians, and coordinates. Compiled by Jan Smits, Map Curator Koninklijke Bibliotheek.
Online Distance and Length Conversion: Convert modern and ancient distance measures.

Map Dealers

Inclusion of a specific dealer or source should not be construed as an endorsement of the products available or the companies selling them.

The 50 States Government Sources: State Maps: List of links to state government map resources. Maintained by the Government Documents/Maps unit of the Evergreen State College Library, Olympia, Wash.
Delorme: Produces various print and CD-ROM products including a popular Atlas & Gazetteer series currently comprising 30 U.S. States - based in Freeport, ME
East View Cartographic: Vendor for information products and services from Russia and former Soviet republics - based in Minneapolis, MN. Expanding to worldwide coverage with continued strength in Soviet-produced materials.
Four One Co. Ltd: Based in Canada. A variety of international maps, travel guides, and map services. Focus on international topographic maps
GeoCenter: German vendor selling topographic and scientific maps and atlases. International coverage.
ILH/GeoCenter's Monthly Selection List

IDOT

Illinois Department of Transportation

International Antiquarian Mapsellers Association

Includes dealer directory, links to map fairs and dealer catalogs, and bibliography of titles useful for collectors.

International Map Trade Association

Directory to companies that create and sell cartographic products

Map Link

Based in Santa Barbara, CA

TVA Map Store - Current Maps and Data

Tennessee Valley Authority's (TVA) Map Store has been in existence since 1940. It is the central repository for TVA's mapping program, which began in 1933. It provides not only current map-related material and data, but also historical records including topographic mapping, aerial photography, cadastral maps, and geodetic control data.

National Geographic Store

Books, maps, globes, educational materials, videos

Omni Resources

Based in Burlington, NC, the Map Division is a major distributor of maps, globes, and teaching materials. Specialty is international mapping, and they offer maps for nearly all countries and regions of the world. Topographic maps are available at various scales.

Raisz Landform Maps

Rand McNally

Rand McNally is a provider of geographic information and services -- in both print and electronic media -- for travel, reference, education and entertainment.

Russia Online, Inc.

Maps and atlases for Russia, other former Soviet Union nations, and Eastern Europe.

Treaty Oak

Treaty Oak specializes in Mexican materials but also covers the rest of Latin America and the world.

USGS Online Store

Search for and order products from USGS and other federal agencies.

USGS Map Dealers

Listing of USGS map dealers by state

USGS Map Catalog

US Geological Survey products grouped by map type and thematic content

USGS National Mapping Server

Maps, educational materials, and digital data available from the USGS

World of Maps

Maps, travel books, and computerized mapping, with a focus on Canadian topographic maps and aeronautical charts

Map Libraries and Map Librarianship Organizations

Illinois State Library Map Collection
The Newberry Library

Home of an extensive Map Collection and the Herman Dunlop Smith Center for the History of Cartography.

University of Chicago Map Collection

The Alexandria Digital Library

John R. Borchert Library List of Map Libraries

Hosted by the University of Minnesota Map Library. Some links no longer work.

Geostat List of Map Libraries

Hosted by the University of Virginia Library

Online Map Catalogs in North America and Europe

Article with web links by David Allen, Map Librarian at the State University of New York at Stony Brook

American Geographical Society Library, UW Milwaukee

Association of Canadian Map Libraries and Archives

International Federation of Library Associations - IFLA

Section of Geography and Map Libraries

MAGERT

American Library Association, Map and Geography Round Table

SLA G&M

Special Libraries Association, Geography and Map Division

Western Association of Map Libraries

Geography and Cartography Organizations

American Congress on Surveying and Mapping: Information on mapping, spatial data, more
American Geographical Society
American Geophysical Union
American Name Society: Includes information on the Placename Survey of the United States
American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing
Association of American Geographers
Canadian Cartographic Association
Cartography and Geographic Information Society (CaGIS): Includes link to Careers in Cartography and GIS brochure.
EUGEO -- European Society for Geography
Geological Society of America
Illinois Geographical Society
ILGISA -- Illinois Geographic Information Systems Association
Institute of Mathematical Geography
International Coronelli Society for the Study of Globes
International Geography Festival (Saint-Die-des-Vosgnes): Chronology includes Vautrin Lud award (the Geography "Nobel") winners.
International Map Collectors' Society
National Center for Geographic Information and Analysis
National Council for Geographic Education -- NCGE
National Geographic Society: This site also includes a Publications Index that allows searching for articles and pull-out map separates from all of the Society's publications.
North American Cartographic Information Society - NACIS
Society for the History of Discoveries
Society of Cartographers (United Kingdom)
Road Map Collectors Association
University Consortium for Geographic Information Science
Washington Map Society (Washington, D.C.)

United States Governmental Agency Sites
For expanded list see LIS 424 Resource Page.

FirstGov: The Federal Government Gateway -- links to more than 31,000,000 web pages.
FedStats: "The gateway to statistics from over 100 U.S. Federal agencies."
Earth Science Information Center, United States Geological Survey
Environmental Protection Agency
Federal Emergency Mapping Agency - FEMA
Federal Geographic Data Committee

Library of Congress Geography and Map Division
National Imagery and Mapping Agency - NIMA
Tiger Mapping Service, U.S. Census Bureau
U.S. Bureau of Land Management
U.S. Census Bureau
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Aerial Photography Field Office
U.S. Department of State
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
U.S. Geological Survey
U.S. National Archives and Records Administration
U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
U.S. National Park Service

Weather and Climate

NCSA Short List of Interesting Weather Links: Links here are to several sites which give weather conditions and forecasts at the local, national, and international level.
Illinois State Climatologist Office: So you don't think that we have exciting weather? Check out this page of interesting maps and data.
Illinois Climate Maps from State Climatologist
Local Climatological Data Online: Daily weather statistics for weather stations across the United States -- Illinois stations include Chicago O'Hare (ORD), Rockford (RFD), Moline (MLI), Peoria (PIA), and Springfield (SPI).
Daily Weather Maps: Weather maps from 1871 thru 2002 from the NOAA Central Library; requires DjVu Browser Plug-in (free download).
Daily Weather Maps: Weather maps from 2003 to the present.
Climate Prediction Center: Provides weather forecasts for the next week or the next month, along with climatic information on events such as El Nino and La Nina, tropical storms, and other weather-related data.
St. Louis Weather Page: The St. Louis Regional Radar provides good coverage of East Central Illinois and areas to the west, north, and south. The 15-day forecast provides early warning of Arctic outbreaks, heat waves, and other weather patterns.
The Weather Channel: Unique features of this wide-ranging site are a comprehensive glossary of weather and climate terms, a 5-day forecast for hundreds of U.S. cities, and current conditions at national parks and seashores.
National Climatic Data Center: Self-advertised as the "World's Largest Archive of Weather Data."
US Climate at a Glance: From NCDC -- national maps of mean temperature and preciption by month from 1900 to the present. Regional, state, and some city data which can be graphed.
NCDC - Climatic Extremes and Weather Events: A National Climatic Data Center site which provides links to data and descriptive information about severe weather events in recent history. Covers hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, temperature extremes and other severe weather happenings. For some events, radar and/or satellite images are provided.
Tornado Project Online: All kinds of interesting information about tornadoes, from personal experiences and myths about tornadoes to summaries of recent and historical tornadoes and an explanation of the Fujita scale used to classify tornadoes.
WW2010 Project: A WWW framework for integrating current and archived weather data with multimedia instructional resources using new and innovative technologies developed by the UIUC Department of Atmospheric Sciences
NASA Online VLF Receiver: Listen to the very low frequency (VLF) "songs of the Earth" live!! Including the "sferics," "tweeks," and "whistlers" of lightning.

Fun Geography

About.Com Geography: Lots of geography trivia and web links
50states.com - States and Capitals: Provides links to an incredible number of sources of information about individual states of the United States, recreation, demographic statistics, travel information, and information on such things as newspapers and colleges in the state can be easily accessed, and the home site provides answers to questions about the state flag, flower, tree, song, etc. There are also links to maps of the states.
Tourism Offices Worldwide Directory: Links to tourist office websites and surface mail addresses for countries worldwide and states of the US.

	University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Library Gateway Homepage Comments to: Map and Geography Library Updated: 12.05.2006 JMJ