In this assignment you will select an early American map and use Map Warper to georeference the map to so that it is related to a geographic coordinate system.

For class Wednesday 6/16: 

  • Write a blog post about the mapping and georectification. Post it to your website. Submit the URL of your post via Blackboard by 8am.
  • Your blog post should be approximately 300 words. It should use full sentences and paragraphs with topic sentences.

Assignment Details

  • Choose an digital map from the Library of Congress that corresponds to your early American history topic.
    • Use the strategies we discussed in class to narrow your search by time period and location.
    • Be sure to use a map with an “overhead view” (similar to a Google map) as opposed to one that shows a scene or landscape view.
    • Download an image of the map. You need a high quality image. 1–4 MB size should work well. It needs to be in jpeg format. (If your dowloaded map is in another format, open it in a photo editor, and export to jpeg.)
  • Use Map Warper to create a georectified map.
    • Sign up for a free Map Warper account.
    • Follow this tutorial to create your map.
    • Make sure to include 5–10 control points.
  • Write a blog post with these details:
    • Define the term georeferencing, and explain the steps you took to create a georeferenced map. Make sure to explain any other key terms you use such as control points, rectify, etc.
    • Describe why you choose the map you did and how it relates to your overall topic. Explain how georeferenced maps might be useful for understanding your early American history topic. Ex. Now that you have a georectified map, what kinds of data could you plot on it? What kind of story or might that tell?
    • Include a link to your georectified map. The format should be something like: https://mapwarper.net/maps/####
    • Give a citation in Chicago style for the Library of Congress map you chose. Use this format: Last name, First name Middle initial. Title of Work. Format. City: Publishing Company, copyright date. Source, Collection. Medium, http://…(accessed date).
    • Include at least 2 screen shots from the process of creating your georectified map. One image should show your finished map as an semi-transparent overlay on top of the Open Street Maps map. The other image should show one of the steps you took (such as uploading your map, adding control points, etc.) to create your map.