IIIF for Educators

Lab Activity: Browsing and Examining Maps

click to copy lesson html ...

Lab Activity: Browsing and Examining Maps

💡 Concept

💡 Concept

Maps are rich sources of information about the past. Historical maps are unfamiliar to many people, but with a bit of practice anyone can learn to read them.

A great way to start is by simply looking closely at a map and making observations.

🖥️  Activity

In this activity you will browse a curated selection of digitized maps about the history of the American West from the David Rumsey Map Collection, choose one for close inspection, and spend some time looking for details and clues about its historical context.

Historical maps of the American West, roughly defined as what is now known as the United States west of the 100th parallel, reveal how geology, topography, and climate have shaped the area's history, development, and public policies. Over time, cartographic representation has helped to both reflect and advance competing narratives about the region and its inhabitants and has shaped public understanding of western identity, resource conflicts, and policy debates. The maps collected below demonstrate the complexity of this mythology and the powerful role cartography has played in constructing ideas about "the West."

🪜 Steps

Part 1: Browsing
For this first part of the activity you will take a look through all the curated maps in the map gallery
  1. Click on any thumbnail to open a zoomable version in the pane to the right.
  2. Resize the zoom window by dragging the grey divider line to the left or right.
  3. Hide and show the viewing pane and/or input panel using the corresponding links in the header.
  4. Click the View Item link in a map card to see the item in the original catalog record.
Part 2: Examining
Once you've viewed them all, you will choose one map to look at more closely
  1. Start by identifying some essential information about your map:
    • Is there a key or legend? If yes, it may contain other essential information.
    • Information about its creation. (Don't just copy information from the map card, try to locate it on the map. If you find it, note where it is.) 
      • Author / Publisher 
      • Title
      • Date published
    • Language
    • Format (e.g. book, flat map, folded map, pamphlet, globe, etc.)
  2. See if you can tell what purposes this map was made for: what indicators or clues can you find in the map about its intended use? 
  3. Take a look at the print, lettering, symbols, colors, and illustrations: what do you notice? Is there anything that stands out to you, or is unexpected?
  4. What is the historical context of publication/creation? Think about what you know about the time and the place where it was made. What indicators or clues can you find in the map about this context?
  5. What is the argument or point-of-view of the map? What does it show and what does it omit?
  6. After examining it closely, do you have questions about the map? What are you wondering about it?
  7. Go back to the collection of maps. Are there any that seem related to yours in some way? What connections to you see?

✉️ Share

Use this discussion forum to share your observations about maps and your map with peers. Submit a reflective post of approximately 40-60 words describing what you learned about your chosen map from your own close examination, following the questions in Part 2 above.

Tips: 

    • Use only the map, the information visible on the card, and the catalog record, and do not refer to outside sources.
    • It's ok if you're not able to answer all of the questions -- just say that you couldn't find the information. 
    • It is fair play to use digital translation tools to read text in languages you don't understand. In your response, include a note about any translation tool(s) you use.
    • There are no wrong answers! The point of this exercise is for you to practice looking closely and interpreting what you see. 

Post by [date]

🤝 Collaborate

Once you have submitted your own post, take a little time to look through submissions by your peers in the discussion forum. Do any resonate with your own observations? Did you learn something interesting or unexpected that you hadn't noticed about your own chosen item? Reply to at least one post by your peer and tell them about it. 

Interact by [date]

copyright 2026