Maps and spatial data for Washington, D.C. landscape history.
For narrative updates, see David Ramos's blog.
Several datasets are digitized from Albert Boschke's 1856–1859 survey and map of the District of Columbia.
data/boschke_1857/hydrography: streams, represented as lines.
data/boschke_1857/water: large water bodies – canals and ponds.
data/boschke_1857/marsh: areas indicated as marsh on the source map. The engravers distinguish between marsh and tidal flats.
Raster data are not tracked in Git.
raster_data/boschke_1857/boschke 1857 georef: a scanned copy of the Boschke map, georeferenced as WGS84.
data/springs: estimated locations of historic springs, based on descriptions in Williams. I've used contemporary maps and historic maps to help with the guesswork.
All data are stored in WGS84, unless otherwise noted.
Boschke, Albert. Topographical map of the District of Columbia / surveyed in the years 1856 '57 '58 & '59 by A. Boschke. Engraved by D. McClelland, Washington, D.C. Published by D. McClelland, Blanchard & Mohun, Washington, D.C., 1861.
Williams, Garnett P. Washington, D.C.'s Vanishing Springs and Waterways / Geological Survey Circular 752. Arlington, Va.: US Geological Survey, 1977.
Office of the Chief Technology Officer, District of Columbia. DC GIS data.