Book of the Week

The matter of the gods: religion and the Roman Empire

by Clifford Ando

Libraries Spotlight

Go to Sanborn Insurance Maps

Sanborn® fire insurance maps are detailed property and land-use records covering more than 12,000 U.S.towns and cities. Founded in 1867 by D. A. Sanborn, the Sanborn Map Company was the primary American publisher of fire maps for over 100 years, repeatedly mapping towns and cities as they changed.

The maps provide a wealth of information, such as building outline, size and shape, construction materials, height, building use, windows and doors, street and sidewalk widths, boundaries, house numbers, and more. The plans often include information and shading for steel beams or reinforced walls, plus symbols for stables, garages, warehouses, etc.

Factories are labeled with the owner’s name, as well as the products manufactured there. In large industrial and commercial buildings, even individual rooms and their uses are recorded. Also depicted are pipelines, railroads, wells, water mains, dumps, and heavy machinery likely to affect the property’s vulnerability to earthquake, fire, and flood.

UDM has access to Michigan maps only.