Historical Photos

A web site named Historic Map Works is not just maps but rather a large collection of numerous items to assist someone with their family history. One section is ‘historical photos’ and can be useful to the researcher. There are approximately 556,900 drawings, photographs and historical notes covering some 38,600 different American buildings, industries, engineering works, homes and landscapes. Since a researcher can not actually travel back in time to see what life was like for an ancestor, this is the next best item.

When using this database, first select a state any family lineage lived in for many years. You will then view an alphabetical listing of towns, regions, streets, counties or locations that the collection has images of. Click on the place you are interested in and a number of the images in thumbnail view will appear. A brief description will be with each image. You can then click on that thumbnail and additional images from different angles may be available. You can then click on one selected photo to enlarge it. The site does make available the opportunity to purchase a print or download a high resolution of the image. You will not be able to save it to your computer, but at least you can view what is available. With the knowledge such image exists, you just might be able to locate it on a Google search.

Some of the images are not photos but rather scanned images of documents relating to the place you selected. This could provide a wealth of information relating to the town or region you are researching. There are many unknown images and documents out there just waiting to be discovered.

Photo: The William Ross Shower house in Manchester, MD.