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One woman watches as another examines with a magnifying glass an ornate, decorative image on a printed page

Learning Beyond the Original Purpose with Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps

Posted by: Cheryl Lederle

In the November/December 2017 issue of Social Education, the journal of the National Council for the Social Studies, our “Sources and Strategies” article features a 1910 map of South San Francisco, San Mateo County, California. The map was created for the unique purpose of documenting estimated fire hazards, and resides in the Sanborn Map Collection, part of an ongoing digitization project at the Library of Congress.

One woman watches as another examines with a magnifying glass an ornate, decorative image on a printed page

The Mind of the Mapmaker: Purpose and Point of View in Maps

Posted by: Danna Bell

In the January/February 2016 "Sources and Strategies" article in Social Education, the journal of the National Council for the Social Studies, Cheryl Lederle and I focus on helping students understand cartographers’ purpose through comparing two 16th century maps: Americae sive quartae orbis partis nova et exactissima descriptio by Diego Gutierrez and page 18 of Theatrum orbis terrarium by Abraham Ortelius.

One woman watches as another examines with a magnifying glass an ornate, decorative image on a printed page

Maps: More Than Just a Tool for Navigation

Posted by: Danna Bell

Most students think of maps as wayfinders, resources to help find their way from point "A" to point "B." However, maps have been created for a variety of different reasons, and studying maps from the Library of Congress can show students how maps can do more than provide directions.