Old Maps on new devices

Teachers and lovers of history and geography are going to love this new app.

Old Maps, available for iPhone, iPad or any Android device through Google Play, allows mobile access to more than 250,000 high resolution, historical maps from the 15th to the 20th century, from across the world.  Only a few years ago, we would never have dreamed of this kind of intimate, immediate and GPS responsive access to rare primary sources.

A collaborative project between Klokan Technologies GmbH and the Great Britain Historical GIS Project, with funding from JISC, the OldMapsOnline project began in 2012.  The website, the easy-to-use gateway for historical maps in libraries around the world,  currently indexes more than half a million of ancient, antique, vintage and old historic maps from prominent archives and libraries, including the British Library, the National Library of Scotland, and the David Rumsey Historical Map Collection.

The app offers instant access to your own GPS position, as well as the opportunity to search location by name, or to browse and filter for a range of years, scale, title or author.  A scroll bar appears on the right displaying available maps. Users may zoom and pan to see an incredibly clear version of an historic map right on their own devices.

Imagine the field trip possibilities!  Imagine the historic inquiry now possible right from your mobile carts!

Consider connecting these resources with the Geography and Maps Lesson Plans and the Teacher’s Guide for Analyzing Maps from the Library of Congress, as well as the Map Analysis Worksheet from the National Archives and Records Administration.

• Android Version (via Google Play)
• iOS Version (via iTunes App Store)

Thanks to Gary Price @infodocket for this fabulous lead!

Filed under: apps, archive, maps, primary sources, technology