Some ward maps can simply be found as part of institutional cartographic collections. Still other such maps may be found reprinted in compilations such as E. Kay Kirkham s A Handy Guide to Record-Searching in the Larger Cities of the United States . Some of the most interesting and perhaps unusual maps genealogists can use are fire insurance maps. One of the most commonly know sets of these maps are simply called the Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps. By the mid-twentieth century, fire insurance maps had been compiled for more than ten thousand cities in the United States, most being the larger, metropolitan areas.
Many cities still have such maps produced today.
Fire insurance maps can provide a variety of assistance to the genealogist. First, because of their detail, one can use them to determine which new house numbers correspond to particular old dwellings when a community or city re-numbers. One can also create a list of organizations in the area which may have been frequented by a potential ancestor. Such organizations may include churches, schools, laundries, groceries, department stores, lumber yards, and the like. By researching the organizational records of those entities, one may uncover new evidence and clues regarding a family s past.