GoKawiilOpenStreetMap US names OldInsuranceMaps.net a Charter Project
OpenStreetMap US has designated OldInsuranceMaps.net (OIM), a platform digitizing and georeferencing historic Sanborn Insurance Maps, as one of its Charter Projects. Started by Adam Cox at Louisiana State University in 2022, OIM now hosts over 1,200 Sanborn maps sourced largely from the Library of Congress, supported by a volunteer community of georeferencers.
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Sanborn Maps are among the most detailed historical records of American cities and towns, and making them georeferenced and searchable online opens them up to historians, urban planners, and hobbyists alike. Formal recognition as a Charter Project signals institutional backing from OpenStreetMap US, likely aiding funding, visibility, and long-term sustainability for a niche but valuable open-data archival effort.
- OldInsuranceMaps.net is now an official OpenStreetMap US Charter Project.
- The platform hosts over 1,200 georeferenced Sanborn Insurance Maps from the Library of Congress.
- Volunteers can request new maps and help georeference them through an accessible interface.
All Over the Map by Betsy Mason & Greg Miller (National Geographic) — If Sanborn fire insurance maps make your inner map nerd light up, this National Geographic collection of remarkable historical and modern cartography is a natural coffee-table companion. It's packed with large-format reproductions and the stories behind them, the same blend of artwork and data that makes projects like OldInsuranceMaps.net so addictive to browse.
See All Over the Map by Betsy Mason & Greg Miller (National Geographic) on Amazon → Affiliate link — we may earn a commission on purchases, at no extra cost to you. Product picked by AI based on this article; it is not a tested recommendation.Source: openstreetmap.us — Oldinsurancemaps.Net Advisory Board, 2026-08-26
Published there as: “Oldinsurancemaps.net is now a Charter Project”
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