Sanborn fire maps online

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I went to a presentation this afternoon at Central Library about the digital version of the Sanborn fire maps. These are maps that were created for fire insurance purposes from before the turn of the 20th century through the 1960s, showing details of each structure -- number of stories, footprint, building material, and sometimes the name or type of business. It's a valuable resource for trying to reconstruct what was where at a given point in time.

Tulsa City-County Library card holders have access to fire maps for Oklahoma online, from anywhere on the Internet, via this link. If you're not in a library, you'll have to log in with your last name and library card number.

I've got an idea for a series about lost downtown Tulsa, going block by block, telling what was on each block over the years before it was turned into asphalt. These maps, combined with city directories, will be a valuable resource. Just so no one else claims it, I'll give you my working title: "If Parking Lots Could Talk."

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» Breakfast: 11/21/2005 from basil's blog

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2 Comments

lol.. more like "if parking lots could scream"!!

Jeff Shaw Author Profile Page said:

That would be a very interesting series. Might be kind of depressing, though, to see all the things that used to be here - only to be wiped out for a parking space or two.
on a rhetorical note, when does the market for parking spaces get saturated in downtown?

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This page contains a single entry by Michael Bates published on November 20, 2005 6:13 PM.

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