The Herman B Wells Library Map Collection at Indiana University Bloomington contains about 400,000 sheet maps with a global geographic range and dates ranging from the 19th Century to present. It is a primarily circulating research collection, with geographic strengths in the Midwestern United States, Russia and Eastern Europe, and the African Continent. It also contains a growing collection of “weird maps”: internet memes, maps from film and television, board game maps, and pictorial maps.
Historically, many of the sheet maps were acquired through the Federal Library Depository Program (FDLP), an initiative of the Government Publishing Office (GPO) to send materials published by the United States government to libraries around the country for preservation and public access. Materials sent through FDLP include maps from various government agencies including the United States Geological Survey (USGS), Department of Agriculture, and the CIA.
Another major historical source of maps for the map collection came from the Library of Congress Geography and Map Division Special Map Processing Project. Former map librarian Dan Seldin participated in the Special Map Processing Project that offered duplicate maps from the Library of Congress’ collection in exchange for cataloging assistance (Andrew et al., 2021). Indiana University received several important collections through the Library of Congress program, including a large collection of Russian topographic maps from 1890 - 1945 (Quill & Dalmau, 2019).
The Herman B Wells Library contains collections from former branch libraries on IU's campus including Geography & Map Library and Geosciences Library. Some rare maps and atlases are held at the Lilly Library.
While most of the map collection is made up of print maps, the collection also contains born-digital cartographic materials and geospatial data, as well as selections of the print map collection that we have digitized and georeferenced. These maps are deposited in Digital Collections (digitalcollections.iu.edu), Indiana University Libraries’ (IUL) image repository.
Digital Collections also hosts digitized maps from the collection, including Russian Military Topographic Maps, Indiana Historic Maps, and the Alfred Kinsey Map Collection. These collections were selected for digitization based on user demand and digitized in-house. The library retains the print copies of these high-use collections as well. Patrons have used these maps in historical research, genealogy research, legal disputes, as art objects, and for tabletop gaming.
The majority of the collection is located on the 2nd floor of the East Tower in the Wells Library. Some USGS topographic maps are housed in the Auxiliary Library Facility.
About 60% of the map collection has been cataloged and is searchable in IUCAT.
We suggest using the Advanced Search and keyword searching for the location, type of map, and time frame. There is an option to limit by the format "map", which can be helpful but may not always include all results. Instead, try adding "map" as an additional keyword. Most maps are housed in the Herman B Wells Library, and limiting by that location can be useful. IUCAT will include results from the David Rumsey Map Collection. These maps show up as "online resource" in the search results.
The remaining 40% of the map collection is uncataloged and not included in IUCAT. These maps are filed according to an area code system that assigns numbers to continents, countries and selected other geographical features. We have adopted a modified version of the area code system used by the library of the American Geographical Society to organize our holdings. Most of the drawers are labeled with the country name and code. Please email us at libmaps@iu.edu for help finding these maps!
Yes, with the exception of Rare Maps and uncataloged maps. Loan times are the same as for books.
We have a large format scanner available by request. Please note that many maps are subject to copyright law for issues of publication and reproduction. Email libmaps@iu.edu with the details of your request to discuss your options.
First, check the guide for the style you are using (MLA, Chicago, APA, etc.). Otherwise, try these resources.
Yes, absolutely. Contact our Map and Spatial Data Librarian, Theresa Quill, to discuss it. We can come talk to your class or prepare a selection of maps for you to use in class.
IU Libraries holds many types of maps on topics related to: Geology, History, Geography, Political Science, Geology and Earth Sciences, Demographics, Literature (fantasy maps), Navigation and hiking, and more. The guide below gives information about different types of maps such as topographic, thematic, and cadastral maps.