Mapping America in 1880: The Urban Transition Historical GIS Project

Abstract

The Urban Transition Historical GIS [Geographic Information Systems] Project is a new data resource for U.S. counties and cities that takes advantage of the North Atlantic Population Project's 100-percent digital transcription of records from the 1880 U.S. census. The project has developed several additional resources to make possible analysis of social patterns at the level of individuals and households while taking into account information about their communities. One key contribution is the creation of historically accurate GIS maps showing the boundaries of enumeration districts in 39 major cities. These materials are now publicly available through a Web-based mapping system. Addresses of all households in these cities are also being geocoded, a step that will enable spatial analyses of residential patterns at any geographic scale. Preliminary analyses demonstrate the utility of multiple scales and the ability to combine information about individuals with data about their neighborhoods.