| Administrative History | This map collection originated from the University of Birmingham’s School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences Map Room and Reference Library. The School of Geography’s map collection started with Harry Thorpe, Head of Department between 1971-1977, who acquired large collections of superseded military mapping of European and Asian countries which formed the foundation of the collection. Subsequent donations, gifts and purchases, primarily managed by Jamie Peart (Map Curator) generated a collection of over 500,000 sheet maps, 2,000 atlases, a local history reference collection of 1,000 items, a collection of books about map-making, map projections, surveying and cartography, and historic and modern place-name gazetteers. The collection consisted of county and ordnance survey maps of Birmingham and the West Midlands region, historic and modern British and foreign atlases, and many other unpublished and printed maps.
In 2023 historic maps and atlases were transferred to the Cadbury Research Library following a reorganisation and move of the School of Geography’s Map Room. Bound atlases were added to the Rare Book Collection of the Cadbury Research Library. |