Deep Maps (Phase 2 of the Deep Map Project)

After spending two weeks analyzing the design of their maps and creating detailed layer tracings, students moved to the final phase of the project. Here they created "deep maps" using the same historical maps as a basis for their work.

What is a "deep map"? Here is a relatively straightforward definition from David Bodenhamer:

"Applying GIS to the humanities is complex. Traditional GIS cannot easily represent uncertainty, ambiguity, emotion, metaphor, or other dynamic attributes of interest to humanists who seek to combine space, time, and place. Deep maps offer a solution.

A deep map is a detailed, multimedia depiction of a place and all that exists within it. It is not strictly tangible; it also includes emotion and meaning. A deep map is both a process and a product – a creative space that is visual, open, multi-layered, and ever changing. Where traditional maps serve as statements, deep maps serve as conversations."

In the context of our course, students attempted to create dialogue between themselves, the maps, and the historical contexts in which they were produced. While an ideal deep map might aim to produce a "total experience" of place, our deep maps had a more humble aim: to identify and explain the meaning of the places depicted on the maps


How to Navigate

The 15 Deep Maps are arranged in alphabetical order. Clicking on a title from the table of contents will bring you to a page containing an embedded view of the deep map, a link to the fullscreen version, and a link to the related tracing project.

In the embedded view, you can pan and click on interactive features. When you click on an interactive feature, a window will pop up containing some combination of text, images, and hyperlinks. You can close the window by clicking the small [x] in the upper right corner of the window.

Please Note:

  • The fullscreen mode allow a larger viewing space and in most cases this means that the pop-up windows will not obscure the main map. 
  • Firefox and Chrome are highly recommended. Internet Explorer will likely not display the interactive maps.