Salt Lake Architecture Bibliography: Maps, GIS, Aerial Photos
GIS at the Library
The Digital Scholarship Lab at the Marriott Library (LVL 1, West) now provides support for GIS. For more information, contact Justin Sorensen, Geospatial Information Specialist.
Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps
Fire insurance maps are detailed city plans, usually at scales of 50 or 100 feet to an inch. They show individual building "footprints," complete with construction details, such as building material (brick, adobe, frame, etc.), height (of larger buildings), number of stories, location of doors, windows, chimneys and elevators, use of structure (dwelling, hotel, church, etc.), street address, and occasionally the ethnicity of the occupants. Other features shown include lot lines, street widths, water pipes, hydrants and cisterns, and fire-fighting facilities.
The maps were originally produced for insurance underwriters, who used them to determine risks and establish premiums (more history). Today these maps are used by scholars and researchers in such fields as history, urban geography, architectural history and preservation, ethnic studies, and urban archaeology.
The Marriott Library Special Collections has 3,000 original (full color, print) Sanborn Fire Insurance maps of Utah (of which, nearly 1,300, or those dating prior to 1922, are available as full-color digital surrogates in the Marriott Library’s Digital Collections (see link below) as well as incomplete microfilm (black and white) sets of maps for the Intermountain states, including Nevada, Colorado, Arizona, Montana, Idaho, New Mexico, and Wyoming. The collection does not include holdings for the other 42 states.
To locate records for Sanborn maps in the Marriott Library catalog, search by SUBJECT for the following:
insurance fire [GEOGRAPHIC PLACE NAME] maps
insurance fire utah salt lake city maps
- GET HELP! Using Sanborn Fire Insurance MapsThe Geography & Map webpage of the Library of Congress includes helpful information about color codes, line codes, indexes, and other aspects of using Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps.
- UTAH Digital Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps: Marriott Library Digital CollectionsThis collection contains large-scale, detailed maps from 1867 into the early 20th century depicting the commercial, industrial, and residential sections of many Utah cities. They were designed in 1866 by surveyor D.A. Sanborn to assist fire insurance agents in determining the risk associated with insuring a particular property. The map surveyors meticulously documented the structural evidence of urbanization – building-by-building, block-by-block, and community-by-community. SEE LINK BELOW.
- Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps for FLORIDAcollection of more than 3,000 map sheets digitized from the printed maps held in the collections of the Smathers Libraries' Map & Imagery Library, at the University of Florida.
- Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps for GEORGIA Towns & Cities 1884-1922A digital collection of 4,445 Sanborn fire insurance maps from the University of Georgia Libraries.
- INTERLIBRARY LOAN: Microfilm of the Fire Insurance Maps in the Library of CongressThe Center for Research Libraries (CRL) in Chicago holds microfilm of all Sanborn fire insurance maps in the Library of Congress (up through 1970). The University of Utah is a member of CRL, which means that UofU students may borrow the mircofilm through INTERLIBRARY LOAN (ILL). You will need the following to complete the Marriott Library's ILL form: city, date(s), and volume numbers.
- Purchase CURRENT Sanborn Fire Insurance MapsCurrent maps only can be purchased directly from the Sanborn Map Company.
- Purchase HISTORICAL & CURRENT Sanborn Fire Insurance MapsHistorical and current Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps may be purchased from Environmental Data Resources, Inc. (EDR).
Map Collection in the Library
- Map Collections in the Marriott Library: A Research GuideVisit this research guide for detailed information about how to find maps of all kinds in the Marriott Library. The collection includes aerial photographs, U.S. Geological Survey topographic maps, and local and regional plat maps -- among many different types of atlases.
Aerial Photography in the Library
NOT all aerial photographs and maps will be available to you online. You may need to consult the library's Map Collection (LVL 1) and/or Special Collections (LVL 4).
Search for local and regional aerial photography in the library catalog with the following search:
SUBJECT / IS EXACT: aerial photography / SUBJECT / IS EXACT: utah **limit to images
Other searches you might try (some of these will have very minimal results):
- SUBJECT IS EXACT: Salt Lake County (Utah)--Aerial photographs
- SUBJECT IS EXACT: Salt Lake County (Utah)--Photo maps
- SUBJECT / IS EXACT: Salt Lake City (Utah)--Aerial photographs
- SUBJECT / IS EXACT: Central business districts Utah Salt Lake City Aerial photographs
- SUBJECT / IS EXACT: Buildings--Utah--Salt Lake City--Aerial photographs
- SUBJECT / IS EXACT: Streets--Utah--Salt Lake City--Aerial photographs
- SUBJECT / IS EXACT: Temple Square (Salt Lake City, Utah)--Aerial photographs
- SUBJECT / IS EXACT: Parks--Utah--Salt Lake City--Aerial photographs
- SUBJECT / IS EXACT: Prisons--Utah-Salt Lake City--Aerial photographs
- SUBJECT / IS EXACT: Federal Heights (Salt Lake City, Utah)--Aerial photographs
- SUBJECT / IS EXACT: Main Street (Salt Lake City, Utah)--Aerial photographs
- SUBJECT / IS EXACT: Capitol Hill (Salt Lake City, Utah)--Aerial photographs
- SUBJECT / IS EXACT: Utah State Prison (Salt Lake City, Utah)--Aerial photographs
- SUBJECT / IS EXACT: Liberty Park (Salt Lake City, Utah)--Aerial photographs
- SUBJECT / IS EXACT: Parleys Creek (Utah)--Aerial photographs
- SUBJECT / IS EXACT: State Capitol (Salt Lake City, Utah)--Aerial photographs
- SUBJECT / IS EXACT: East High School (Salt Lake City, Utah)--Aerial photographs
- SUBJECT / IS EXACT: Railroad Stations--Utah--Salt Lake City--Aerial photographs
- SUBJECT / IS EXACT: Fort Douglas (Utah)--Aerial photographs
- SUBJECT / IS EXACT: Salt Lake Temple--Aerial photographs
- SUBJECT / IS EXACT: Salt Lake Country Club (Salt Lake City, Utah)--Aerial photographs
Several Relevant Collections of Aerial Photography at the Library:
- Shipler's Commerical Photographs (Special Collections LVL 4)
- Salt Lake County (aerial photo maps) (G4343 .S2 A4 1990z S3 -- Special Collections LVL 4 & Map Collection LVL 1)
- Salt Lake County, Utah (part) [aerial photographs] (G4343.S2 A4 1971 .U5 -- Special Collections LVL 4: Manuscripts Audio Visual)
Other Resources
- Green Map AtlasGreen Map System is an adaptable framework for charting nature and culture in hometown environments. Since 1995, GMS has: 1) helped citizens of all ages identify, promote and link their communities' ecological and cultural resources; 2) built inclusive networks that extend civic participation and accelerate progress toward sustainability; 3) promoted model greening efforts underway across the globe; & 4) used the info-web in service of the web-of-life.
- Calcuate Your Solar PotentialA 3D model of Salt Lake City was used to analyze the solar potential for every square meter in the city. Use this tool to build a solar potential report for your home or business within SLC city limits.
- USGS Maps, Imagery, & PublicationsWide range of resources -- many entail purchase fees.
URISA: The Association for GIS Professionals
The Urban and Regional Information Systems Association (URISA) is a nonprofit association of professionals using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and other information technologies to solve challenges in state/provincial, regional and local government agencies and departments. URISA is considered to be the premier organization for the use and integration of spatial information technology to improve the quality of life in urban and regional environments.
