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GIS Data Sources

Not finding it here? Want to suggest a link? Contact the GIS Librarian.

ESRI Data and Maps is a set of 5 DVD-ROMs containing many types of map data for the entire globe, with even more detailed datasets for the US. It includes StreetMap North America, which can be used for geocoding addresses in the US and Canada. These discs are located in a binder on
Stone Computing Center Reference Bookcase (map it) near the Computing Help Desk.

The Olin Library map room also has indexes of United States and International maps and GIS data sources.

New York State

Other States

See also the list of state GIS data centers, and Olin Library's index of United States maps and GIS data sources.

Great Lakes Region

United States

Top sites:

DAACs (Distributed Active Archive Centers)

EPA (United States Environmental Protection Agency)

USDA (United States Department of Agriculture)

USFWS (United States Fish and Wildlife Service)

USGS (United States Geological Survey)

International

Canada and Mexico

Olin Library has an excellent Index of International Maps & Data Sources.

Commercial

Compilations

Aerial/Remotely-Sensed Imagery

Web Mapping Applications

Local / New York State:

National and International:

Historical Data Sources

Finding historical sources of data already in GIS format can be difficult. Local and state historical societies, museums and libraries may be useful in finding source data. In many cases you will need to convert archival formats such as paper maps into digital formats through scanning and georeferencing, and/or the conversion of tables into spreadsheets which are then linked to boundary files (which may need to be manually digitized within a GIS). Our tutorials may offer some assistance in this process. Contact the GIS Librarian for further help.

  • USDA Census of Agriculture provides agricultural statistics from 1840 onward.
  • USDA Census of Agriculture Historical Archive Collaborative project between Mann Library and the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), digitizing and structuring state and county level Census of Agriculture data from 1987 back to 1840.
  • David Rumsey Historical Map Collection has over 13,600 maps online. The collection focuses on rare 18th and 19th century North and South America maps and other cartographic materials. Historic maps of the World, Europe, Asia and Africa are also represented.
  • Historical Aerial Photographs of New York : Cayuga, Cortland, Onondaga, Seneca, Tompkins, and Wayne Counties, back to 1930s.
  • Historical Geographic Information System (NHGIS) -Census data and GIS-compatible boundary files for the United States between 1790 and 2000
  • Olin Library Map collection, including
    • Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps,  Building outlines and details for over 12,000 U.S. towns. The maps were revised periodically between 1867 and 1970, in order to be accurate. This series of revisions provides the historical researcher with an invaluable series of neighbourhood snapshots.
    • Land Ownership Maps showing ownership of land parcels and the identities of individual residents in rural areas. Natural and cultural features of an area are also depicted, including rivers, vegetation, hills, towns, roads and railroads.

    The Olin Map Library staff may be helpful in identifying other useful historical sources as well.

  • Social Explorer (Cornell users only) creates thematic maps and reports of historical U.S. Census data, as far back as 1790.
  • USDA Aerial Photography Field Office -The Aerial Photography Field Office (APFO) has a vast amount of imagery of most of the United States and its territories, with dates from 1955 to the present.