Cairt: Newsletter of the Scottish Maps Forum

The National Library of Scotland have just published the latest issue of Cairt, the newsletter of the Scottish Maps Forum available to read here. The bulletin, issued twice per year, is a useful resource for information on new websites and online resources, and gives the lowdown on research projects using historical maps.

This most recent issue charts the creative residences of Shetland-based textile artist Diane Garrick and writer and broadcaster Tom Pow. The two were set the task of using the Library's extensive Bartholomew Archive to engage groups of visitors who may not have otherwise used the collection, to experience it for themselves.

During her Residency, Diane produced a number of textile works which were inspired by the archive and the Library's general collection of maps. This made us pause to consider how resources as quantitative in nature as maps can be reconstructed in a creative process which imbues place with personal meaning. With the rise of digital mapping through resources we've blogged about in the past such as Pastmap and Cartogrammar, this is an interesting perspective, reified by considering the painstaking efforts which cartographers in earlier centuries endured to bring us beautifully illustrated maps. Textile mapping is one example of the creative potential contained in map collections, and possibly other, data-intensive resources regularly consulted by architects and engineers.

'Cairt' is the Gaelic and seventeenth-century Scots word for map. Back-runs of previous issues can be found here as pdf files. It's possible to be added to be added to the mailing list to receive the 'Cairt' newsletter and information about events by emailing  maps@nls.uk.

New Website Follows Glasgow's 'Future City' Project

You may remember us blogging about Glasgow's selection as a 'smart city' in an earlier post this year. 

We were celebrating Glasgow's competition win to pilot how technology can make life in the city, smarter, safer and more sustainable. The competition had been organised by the Technology Strategy Board (TSB) - the Government's innovation agency. Glasgow's £24 million funding bid met with approval by the Board who have set up a number of specialist teams working on various technological projects around the city. A smartphone app for cyclists, intelligent street lighting and 'citizen science' mapping are some of the trail-blazing technologies in the pipeline which the public, academics and businesses will be encouraged to use and improve in a pilot focused on the 'smart' future of our cities.

We're revisiting the Future City /Glasgow project after discovering that a dedicated website has been launched making its work easier to follow online. The site brings visitors the latest news on the 'Demonstrator programme' as  it's been dubbed, with details relayed via press releases.

Check the website for details of the projects and to keep up-to-date with news. It's also worth navigating from the main page to read the blog discussing the nature of 'smart' and 'future' cities and to check the event-footage that's being streamed of events including science-related news from the ongoing UK Space Conference (Monday 15th to Wednesday 17th July). We found this video of the new City Operations Centre which will house the teams monitoring Glasgow's new CCTV network, the city's traffic lights and traffic cameras. You'd be smart to follow!

Pastmap - Free Interactive Mapping Tool

An interactive map which allows anyone to map Scotland's historic environment online has just been launched by the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS). 'Pastmap' consolidates information previously held on five heritage-organisation databases into one multi-layered, online space. Visitors to the website can navigate to their area of interest, zoom in on a section, arrange the information into layers, and click on the map's objects for more information.

The visual nature of the site and it's easy-to-use controls means that it will probably appeal to both those with a professional interest and others who may simply take delight in exploring the archaeological and historic features of their local area. A great way to explore local heritage and architectural landmarks from the comfort of your armchair!

UoG Release Town Plans of Glasgow's Queen Street Station and George Square

The most recent blog entry from the Maps, Official Publications and Statistics Unit at University of Glasgow's Library features a revised town plan of the city in 1893 around the areas of Queen Street Station, George Square and the City Chambers.

The map is intended as an ordnance survey of Glasgow, however on closer scrutiny it also reveals hidden details of another era in the city's urban development. The 'Night Asylum', 'Electric Lighting Stations' and 'The Western Club' captured the imaginations of the staff at University of Glasgow (UoG) who provide some historical context to explain the city's demand for these buildings in the late nineteenth century. The assimilation between social conditions in Victorian Glasgow and urban planning are exposed by reading more about the buildings' past on the blog.

It is possible to zoom and pan-in on the map by clicking here.

The excellent resources available from UoG are worth keeping in mind for researching local urban development and town planning. The unit of Maps, Official Publications and Statistics can be found on Level 7 of the Library building which GSA students can access by presenting a student card to security staff at the Library entrance. For more information on this specific blog, see UoG's blog entry at the link.
http://universityofglasgowlibrary.wordpress.com/2013/01/03/town-plan-of-glasgow-queen-street-station-and-george-square/
http://www.gla.ac.uk/services/library/aboutthelibrary/departmentsandcollections/mapsofficialpublicationsandstatisticsunit/

Glasgow 'Smell Map'

Edinburgh-based designer Kate McLean has created a most unusual map of the city that portrays its scents, rather than its street pattern. Glasgow joins a number of cities around the world that Kate has 'mapped' in this way; for her and the residents and visitors she has interviewed, Glasgow 'smells of diesel, wet moss and Lorne sausage'. There's a tantalising glimpse of the Glasgow map on Kate's website, but the full thing can be viewed at the Glasgow Science Centre until September 16th.

Where we used to live

A new website of historical maps, hosted by the University of Portsmouth, has been launched and is freely available online. It provides access to 60,000 maps from around the world, and enables a particular place to be selected and relevant maps viewed, in some cases back to medieval times. The site incorporates the collections of the British Library, the National Library of Scotland, the Czech Republic's Moravian Library, and the David Rumsey Collection in California. It is hoped that the size of the collection will double by the end of the year.

Scottish six-inch maps online

The National Library of Scotland has recently added 7486(!) map sheets to its already vast online collection. The maps are the six-inch to the mile and later edition maps of Scotland and cover the period 1892-1960. At this scale, they illustrate a very wide range of natural and man-made features and are excellent for local history. It is possible to zoom into the detail of the maps using an interactive index map, and to search by county, parish and a gazetteer of place names.

Digimap researcher workshop

Digimap's support team are organising a free, informal workshop in Edinburgh on Tuesday 29 November, aimed at any postgraduate or researcher using or intending to use Digimap as part of their work. The day will include informal breakout sessions and workshops, and is an excellent opportunity to receive advice and support on issues such as sourcing geospatial data, data management, making the most of Digimap, and advanced GIS. Places are limited; follow the link above to complete a form and register your interest.

Online maps of Glasgow

The University of Glasgow Library has made some more of its historic map collection available online, this time focusing on the Glasgow area and including 'zoomable' Ordnance Survey and private surveyor maps. The intention is to continue adding further sheets, so it will be worth bookmarking the site and checking back periodically.

Housing Paper Worlds

The National Library of Scotland is showcasing architectural designs and 11 new Edinburgh maps created by Dundee University architecture students as part of a project to design a new Cartographic Institute in the heart of Edinburgh's Old Town. Original artwork, designs and plans for the building are displayed alongside the maps, setting the sites in context. The exhibition runs until 26 August, and is at the the Library's George IV Bridge building.

Maps of Glasgow: historical to digital

Glasgow University Library has a display on Level 3 of Glasgow-related treasures from its map collection which chart the city's growth from the mid-17th century. The exhibition can also be viewed online, where there is a useful commentary and the facility to enlarge the maps for easier viewing.

The History of the Ordnance Survey

The Ordnance Survey website, gives free access to two full-text ebooks on the history of the Ordnance Survey. The first is “A History of the Ordnance Survey” (1980) edited by W.A. Seymour and J.H. Andrews and the second is “Ordnance Survey: Map Makers to Britain since 1791” (1992) by Tim Owen and Elaine Pilbeam. These free books will appeal to those interested in the history of map-making, map design, mapping technologies, the publishing industry, the role of maps in the history of British tourism, the intertwining of landscape and history in visual form, the British development of infographics and spatial concepts, and much more. The books are presented for reading online using Flash flip-book software, but those loading this software in their Web browser will find that it also offers a menu icon for downloading each book as a PDF file.

Access : free

Visualising Urban Geographies

A partnership between the National Library of Scotland and the University of Edinburgh has resulted in an online resource which allows new insights into the spatial character and historical development of Edinburgh. 'Visualising Urban Geographies' provides new dynamic maps of the city and enables historic maps to be compared with their present-day equivalents and satellite images.
Access: Free

OpenStreetMap mapping party

Glasgow's Electron Club, based at the city's Centre for Contemporary Arts (CCA), will be hosting a mapping party on Saturday 22 May. Mapping parties are events where anyone can come and participate in the creation of a free, open source map that can be contributed to, edited and used by anyone anywhere. Saturday's event will focus on Glasgow's Queen's Park.

Link: http://www.electronclub.org/doku.php?id=mapping_party

Access: Free, but registration required