A guide to using maps to aid your Victorian local history research.
While our Map Collection's strength is primarily in Australian and British maps, a varied collection of maps from other regions is also held. In particular, the Library has many maps of 19th Century India, of the trenches of World War 1 in France and Belgium, and of New Guinea before and after World War 2.
If you're having trouble locating a place, perhaps because you are unsure of the spelling of the place name or the nation-state in which it is/was located, refer to the page on locating places.
The following checklist suggests resources of use when researching localities in Europe other than the British Isles:
1. Gazetteers. These reference books provide basic information about locations, such as coordinates and population size. For most countries in the world we hold a United States Board of Geographic Names Gazetteer, produced between the 1950s and the 1980s. These gazetteers provide place names, a one word description, and the latitude and longitude. You can then use these coordinates to locate the place on a modern map. To find gazetteers search the catalogue, combining the place name with the word gazetteer (eg. Poland gazetteer or Afghanistan gazetteer).
2. Atlases. The library has many historical atlases of the World, as well as atlases of regions, such as Europe, Asia or the Americas. To find atlases, do a keyword search of the catalogue for the word ‘atlas’ and the name of the country or region you are interested in. Use the options on the right side of the search results to refine results to your period of interest. You can also try searching for world atlases if we do not have an atlas specific to your country of interest.
3. Selected key map resources. List of interesting, useful maps resources.
4. Library catalogue. To find relevant maps in the catalogue, select the Maps drop-down menu to the right of the search box and try searching with various keywords relating to your area of interest, such as the names of towns, villages or counties. Once you have a list of results, you can refine them using the options on the right, for example, you can limit by creation date.
5. Maps selected by staff to meet your research needs. If you submit a map inquiry, staff may be able to find other kinds of maps, or related resources, that will help you with your particular research question.
Online resources from other collections
Old Maps Online allows you to browse the map collections of international libraries, including the British Library, New York Public Library and Harvard Library. Users can search geographically, using a world map, or via keyword search.
The David Rumsey Map Collection at Stanford University Library focuses is on rare 16th through 21st century maps of North and South America, as well as maps of the World, Asia, Africa, Europe, and Oceania.
The Perry-Castañeda Library at the University of Texas includes a large number of world maps, both historical and contemporary. Their collection features some of the best online coverage of Asia and parts of Africa.
Europe
A concise historical atlas of Eastern Europe maps Eastern Europe at key moments in history from Medieval times until 1996, with accompanying text providing explanations of the conflicts and political machinations that led to border changes.
Andrees world atlas 1912. This German atlas, published in 1912, and available in the Library on microfilm, is particularly useful for confirming the location of places in central and Eastern Europe.
Central European maps 1865 [microform] covers most of Germany (East and West), Belgium, Netherlands, Luxemburg, Poland, North-eastern France, and small parts of Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Czechoslovakia and the Baltic States.
CartoMundi This French resource has digitised maps of Europe, Africa, Asia and the Americas.
German maps & facts for genealogy. This book contains over 100 maps of German kingdoms, duchies and principalities, including information about the religions of the states, and the shifting borders of what was known as Prussia.
Stanfords useful maps: Sweden, Norway and Denmark. This nineteenth century atlas to the Scandinavian countries can be used to pinpoint villages your ancestors may have come from.
Asia
Historical atlas of South-East Asia features maps of the region from key periods of history. These maps highlight changes caused by wars, colonisation and shifting borders.
The Americas
The Library of Congress Map Collections page features digitised maps with a strong focus on the United States.
The history atlas of North America contains maps and contextual information covering key moments and topics in North American history up until 1998.
India
The Library holds a strong collection of colonial maps of India. Search the catalogue for the city or region of interest using the Maps drop-down menu to the right of the search box . Some maps of India are uncatalogued. If you can’t find what you’re looking for please submit a map inquiry.
Africa
Afriterra contains digitised maps of Africa, mostly published pre-20th century.
The history atlas of Africa contains maps and contextual information covering key moments and topics in African history up until 1998.
New Zealand and the Pacific
The National Library of New Zealand has a large collection of maps. Search their catalogue by place name, then use the menu on the left to refine your results to online items.
Facsimile of Jean Rotz' map of Southeast Asia showing part of India, Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, Java and part of Australia. Contains a detailed map border, and coloured figures and scenes.
Mapping the world: maps and travel literature This database contains nineteenth century maps drawn from the vast map repositories of the British Library and the National Archives (UK), maps of the Americas from the American Antiquarian Society, coverage of Canada & the polar regions from the University of Alberta, and select travel narratives from various sources, including the Bryn Mawr Collection of European travel accounts.
Age of exploration This database covers key events in the history of European maritime exploration spanning 5 centuries from 1420-1920 including the opening of trade with the Spice Islands, the colonisation of the Americas and Australasia, the search for the Northwest and Northeast Passages and the race for the Poles. Exclusive content is drawn from Bibliothèque nationale de France, British Library, The Explorers The National Archives, UK, The Newberry Library, Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand.
Access to these databases is freely available here at the library. Victorian residents who are state library members can also access them from home.
Large scale maps show a small area in great detail.
1:480 (which is 40 feet to 1 inch) is an example of a fairly large scale. At this scale 1 cm represents 4.8 metres.
Small scale maps show a larger area in less detail.
1:100,000 is an example of a fairly small scale - at this scale 1 cm represents 10 kilometres.
