Meet the Map!

Maps are among the most information-dense sources out there, so how do you get the most out of looking at one?

Picture of me, Georgia Brown, standing in front of a row of globes.

Georgia Brown, Public Services Librarian American Geographical Society Library

Hi, my name is Georgia Brown (she/her)! I'm the Public Services Librarian at the American Geographical Society Library at UW-Milwaukee. Some of my responsibilities are working with researchers, teaching classes like yours about maps and visual literacy, helping students with their projects, and so much more.

Feel free to reach out to me with any questions about this StoryMap, your research, maps, atlases, visual literacy, etc. at browngl@uwm.edu. We can chat via email or Teams.

Follow along with this StoryMap to learn about types of maps and how to analyze them!

Purpose of a Map

Some maps are made to educate. This 1851 Whale Chart shows the different types of whales in the world's oceans.

Each of these whales represents a different species, and you can see where each species lives.

This map is made to persuade. Scroll down to check out some of the loaded language in the title and in the key.

In the title, notice the words "aggressive" and "plot."

In the key, the mapmaker says the red arrow symbolizes "attempted aggression" and the chain represents railways "dominating the Chinese mainland."

Some maps are made for entertainment. This map depicts "Loveland: a place where everyone should go; Where romance thrives, and Friendships dearer grow."

Check out the States of Good Health, Sincerity, Admiration, and Endearment!

These three types of maps are pretty broad, but maps can be made for so many reasons! It's important to know what you're looking at, so check out the next section about the Parts of a Map.

Parts of a Map

Take a minute to think about a map. It can be a paper map of Milwaukee, directions on Google Maps, or even a map at the front of your favorite fantasy novel. What are some of the parts you see on every one?

Maps normally have:

  1. A title
  2. A scale bar
  3. A compass rose
  4. A legend

Title

This map's title is Recreational Areas of the United States.

    Scale bar

    1. Scale bars show ratio of the map compared to the place it depicts. (Think of a Hot Wheels car versus a real car).

    Compass rose

    1. The compass rose shows the directions on a map to orient the viewer.
    2. They can be really simply or very heavily decorated like this one with lions.

    Legend

    1. This map's legend depicts the different types of U.S. Recreational Areas as various colors.
    2. Legends show the meanings of different colors, shapes, and symbols on maps.

    Maps sometimes include:

    1. An inset
    2. The creator's name
    3. The creation date
    4. Colonialism and/or imperialism

    An inset

    An inset shows a part of the map in more detail. This shows the Recreational Areas in Alaska.

    Creator's name

    The creator's name can normally be found somewhere near the title. This map shows it above, but it's just as likely to be found below or towards the top or bottom margin.

    Creation date

    1. The creation date could be anywhere on a map. Keep an eye out for it near the title or in one of the corners.
    2. Hot Tip: AGSL maps all have the date on the lower left-hand corner.

    Colonialism and/or imperialism

    This one is trickier to find, but it's oftentimes still there. The best questions to consider are:

    1. Who is this map made for?
    2. Who benefits from the map?
    3. What does this map show and, more importantly, who is left off the map?

    Time to put some of your skills to the test!

    Meeting a Map

    Maps have so much to tell us, but sometimes we need to know the right questions to ask. Pick one of the maps in the Slider box below to ask some questions.

    Questions to ask maps:

    What type of map is it?

    Why did the creator make it? Does anything on the map help you draw that conclusion?

    What was happening in history at the time this map was made?

    How does it compare to a current (or historical) map of the same place? (use both maps)

    Questions to ask yourself when looking at a map:

    What am I thinking about while looking at this map?

    What did you find out from this map that you might not learn anywhere else?

    It's helpful to reflect on what you're looking at on the map, and maybe compare reflections with someone else to see what you might have missed. Also check to see what stood out most to them versus what stood out most to you. There's no wrong way to look at the map, but a million right ways!

    Test your Skills

    Pictorial map of Australia showing cities, towns and areas producing coal, copper, gold, iron, lead, platinum, silver, steel, tin and zinc; Issued by British Information Services, an agency of the British Government. Text block in lower right corner: "Australia in war and peace. Australia's industrial resources have been completely reorganised to meet war-time demands. Her factories are now turning out armaments of many types and aircraft, including fighters and bombers. Her shipbuilding programme includes destroyers, minesweepers and merchant vessels. In addition, Australia is contributing to a great wheat pool which will help to feed the starving peoples of Europe when the war is over." Australia's coat of arms in upper right corner.

    Microsoft Forms

    Some of the Meet the Map portions come from Analyze a Map of a National Archives: National Archives. "Analyze a Map." Last reviewed December 18, 2018. https://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/worksheets/map.html

    Georgia Brown, Public Services Librarian American Geographical Society Library

    Pictorial map of Australia showing cities, towns and areas producing coal, copper, gold, iron, lead, platinum, silver, steel, tin and zinc; Issued by British Information Services, an agency of the British Government. Text block in lower right corner: "Australia in war and peace. Australia's industrial resources have been completely reorganised to meet war-time demands. Her factories are now turning out armaments of many types and aircraft, including fighters and bombers. Her shipbuilding programme includes destroyers, minesweepers and merchant vessels. In addition, Australia is contributing to a great wheat pool which will help to feed the starving peoples of Europe when the war is over." Australia's coat of arms in upper right corner.