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Archive: 2019 (29 Posts)

A map, dated 1914, that shows the voting status for women in the United States.

Mapping the Suffragist Years

Posted by: Cynthia Smith

The map above shows the voting status for American women in 1914. Sadly, after of years of fighting for voting rights most American women had only partial suffrage or no suffrage at all. The exhibit Shall Not Be Denied opened June 4, 2019 at the Library of Congress. It explores the struggles that American women …

This map indicates the location of ships sunk by U-boat activity in the Mediterranean, the Atlantic, and the North Sea, specifically within those areas open to unrestricted warfare.  The total was roughly 7,500 vessels.

Risky Business

Posted by: Mike Klein

During World War I, the most hazardous place to be, relatively speaking, was not on the battlefield, but inside a German U-boat. Throughout the war, Germany deployed 375 Unterseebooten, i.e. U-boats or submarines; 202 were lost in action, or about fifty-four percent. Similarly, of the 17,000 sailors who served in them, about 5,100 were lost …

Brown, red, and yellow tinted map illustration of the continents of Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia, with a circular frame around them

Surveying: The Art of Measuring Land, Part One

Posted by: Ed Redmond

This is the first of two posts outlining traditional 18th and 19th surveying methods. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, surveying is the art and science of measuring land. More precisely, it is “a means of making relatively large-scale, accurate measurements of the Earth’s surface.”  The authoritative 18th century treatise on surveying, entitled “The Compleat Surveyor or …

Brown, red, and yellow tinted map illustration of the continents of Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia, with a circular frame around them

Celebrate GIS Day at the Library of Congress on Wednesday, November 13th!

Posted by: Tim St. Onge

The Library of Congress is proud to celebrate GIS Day on Wednesday, November 13th with a showcase event: In the Shadows of Notre Dame: Geographic Information Science, 3D Mapping and Cultural Heritage Preservation. The all-day series of discussions will be held from 8:30am to 3:30pm in Room LJ-119 on the first floor of the Thomas …

Plan goroda Dalʹni︠a︡go / glavnyĭ inzhener V. Sakharov.  [Russia]: Litografiia T. Daloniago, [around 1899].  Map, lithographic print.  Scale approximately 1:21,000. 0.01 [represents] 100 sagenes.  Geography and Map Division.  LC call number G7824.D3 1899 .S3

A Rare Russian Plan of Dalian

Posted by: Mike Klein

In 1898 Tsarist Russia wrested from China a long-term lease for Port Arthur (Lushun), its new-found warm-water port on the east coast restricted to use by the Russian navy.  Under pressure from Great Britain and Germany, two other European powers with concessions in China, Russia agreed to establish an open port on the southern tip …

Propaganda Maps to Strike Fear, Inform, and Mobilize – A Special Collection in the Geography and Map Division

Posted by: Ryan Moore

Filled with heavy topics of war and occupation, War map: pictorial and propaganda map collection 1900-1950 contains maps and messages that frequently are pointed, unapologetic, and echo the anger and desperation of nations at war. The collection of 180 maps typifies how cartographs were used to influence popular opinion and garner support for military and political efforts …