Untold stories
Interactive maps offer a window into the past
WATERLOO — Some of you might just see an old hand-drawn map. But Eva Dodsworth sees hundreds of stories waiting to be told.
That’s why Dodsworth, the geospatial data services librarian at the University of Waterloo, and her staff are busy digitizing their treasure trove of historical maps to allow anyone with a web browser to explore their community’s past.
“Maps tell stories, but most people don’t know how to read them,” said Dodsworth.
“There’s so much hidden in maps, and that’s lost now. Anyone who’s 20 or younger was never brought up reading road maps. They have GPS, and they have their phones. So we’re trying to bring these maps back.”
Using familiar templates such as Google Maps or Google Earth, the library staff are embedding historical regional maps on top of those popular programs so you can explore, say, a city map of Galt in 1867, or aerial photos of Waterloo in 1955.
It can be a labour-intensive process, getting those handdrawn maps to line up with modern mapping software, but the end result is fascinating. It shows neighbourhoods that had been dramatically altered by development, long-gone businesses that no longer exist and cemeteries or other historicallysignificant sites that have been forgotten by time.
The Waterloo library (uwaterloo.ca/library/geospatial) has spent years digitizing its vast collection of municipal maps, fire insurance plans, aerial photographs and more — and putting them online so the public can access it. It’s quite an undertaking. They have more than 20,000 maps, 55,000 areal photos and more than 500 atlases.
With a few clicks, you can now see how large swaths of Waterloo evolved from rural pasture into a sprawling city with man-made lakes, suburbs, malls and university campuses.
“It’s a really simple way for folks to see how much things have changed in, 70 years, 50 years or even 30 years,” said Dodsworth, who’s also co-ordinator of the university’s Geospatial Centre.
“It’s a great way to explore their community.”
Since new print maps are rarely being produced, the library’s work is focused on preserving its collection rather than expanding it. They have historical value, and need to be protected, she said.
“My fear is that when I retire, someone else might come in and say, ‘We don’t need these maps anymore, and we’re just going to recycle them,’” she said.
As they digitize the maps, Dodsworth has been struck by the sacrifices that come with a growing region. There are countless homes, business and farms that have been plowed under in the name of progress, she said.
“Things that hit home for me are all the lives that have been changed in order for this community to grow,” Dodsworth said.
“I get emotional when I see the homes that have been torn down. There are so many families who had to alter their lives and lose their family home in order for the roundabouts to come in, or the road network to change.”
She hopes, in some small way, the library’s mapping project means the memories of those demolished homes and buildings can live on. There’s still a lot of stories to be told.
“Part of me wants some of that story to continue, and have folks remember them,” she said. “So our goal is to keep going.”