May 23, 2007

Sanborn Maps at Historic Charleston Foundation

Thanks to a Preservation Assistance Grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities, funds were awarded to the Margaretta Childs Archives at Historic Charleston Foundation to improve storage and preservation of, and access to, its volume of Insurance Maps of Charleston, South Carolina, Vol. I, a/k/a "Sanborn Maps" (1902 with updates through 1953). Funds were used to purchase both a large-format map cabinet and file folders. The maps have been removed from the binding, placed into protective sleeves and then into folders, and distributed throughout a 5-drawer file cabinet, making access and handling easy. While some Sanborn Maps have been digitized and available online and are also on microfilm, for many research purposes, nothing compares to the ability to have the maps in hand, especially now that they may be handled without limitations at HCF's Archives.

Please keep this resource in mind for your patrons who are doing historic building research. Also, if you'd like to undertake a similar project, contact Karen Emmons at 724-8490.

(Karen wishes to thank Liz Newcombe at the Charleston County Public Library for her instruction and advice and for the use of the library's cutting and welding equipment!)

No comments: