Ohio Maps

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Ohio Maps
Several types of maps are useful for genealogists. Some maps give historical background of the area or show migration routes, such as roads, rivers, and railroads. Topographical, Plat, Land ownership maps plus many others are described on the Maps page. Many maps are in published atlases.

Extensive collections of Ohio maps can be found at the following places:


 * Ohio Historical Society Click the "Research" tab and at the next page, click "OHS Archives/Library. In the "Catalog Quick Search" box type Ohio Maps. Use the "Advanced Search" tab to narrow down a search.
 * Kent State University In the box below the words "Search for books and more" choose the option "Subject" and type Ohio Maps.
 * Ohio university and public libraries.

City Ward Maps

 * Walling, H.F. Atlas of the State of Ohio from Surveys. 1868. Reprint, (Knightstown, Indiana: Bookmark, 1976.) ;
 * Ward Maps of United States Cities, (Washington, D.C. Library of Congress, [1975?].)

County Atlases and Boundaries

 * For a map of Ohio divided into counties click here.
 * Historic Maps of Akron and Summit County, Ohio has a combination of atlas', personal examinations and survey's 1874, also illustrated Summit County, Ohio 1891 maps.
 * United States Census Bureau State and County Map. This map will allow you to zoom in on any state or county in the United States and read the names of all of the neighboring counties.
 * Maps showing the formation of counties in Ohio and how the boundaries of the counties changed as they were added are online at n2genealogy.com. The Ohio map has county formation years between 1788 and 1888. They also have the census year maps from 1790 to 1930.

Published guides

 * Several guides to the history of Ohio's counties and boundary changes have been published.
 * Long, John H., ed. Historical Atlas and Chronology of County Boundaries, 1788-1980. Scale: 1:633,600. Illinois, Indiana, Ohio. (Boston, Massachusetts: G.K. Hall, 1984.) ; This collection offers an excellent collection of state maps, showing when and where each county changed boundaries.
 * Phillips, Louis W. Jurisdictional Histories for Ohio’s Eighty-Eight Counties, 1788-1985. (Bowie, Maryland: Heritage Books, c.1986.) ; This book is a valuable guide to Ohio's counties in jurisdictional histories.

Historical Maps and Atlases

 * City Maps
 * The David Rumsey Map Collection contains an extensive collection of 229 historical atlases, maps, and other antique cartographic treasures.
 * 1895 Map of Ohio by Color Landform Atlas/Ray Sterner.
 * Sanborn Maps provide detailed towns and cities from 1867 to 1970.
 * The Family History Library has maps dating from the Revolutionary War era and the earliest land subdivisions to present-day county highway maps. These include historical atlases, mostly published in the 1870s, from 60 counties. Atlases are available covering the era of 1673 to 1783.


 * Brown, Lloyd Arnold. Early Maps of the Ohio Valley. (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1959.) ;

Land Ownership Maps

 * Landowner maps are especially valuable. These maps show the lands of a county, with the names of the owners written on them. Most of these maps date between 1860 to 1900. There is a checklist of 19th-century United States county maps in the Library of Congress.


 * Stephenson, Richard W., comp. Land Ownership Maps. (Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress, 1967.) Digital version available through FHL catalog entry. This checklist records 1,449 United States county land ownership maps, 69 of which are Ohio counties.

Ohio River Maps

 * Ohio River Maps Land grants were given to those that served in the Revolutionary War for their service pension. The Ohio River Valley became the new frontier for these settlers. Many choose to build their new homestead along the sides of the Ohio River. The river maps include insets of many small town maps - larger towns have their own maps. These maps maps identify wards, districts and townships and also include landowner and street names for the year 1877. The counties included in this Ohio River Maps website are: Hamilton, Clermont, Brown, Adams, Scioto, Lawrence, Gallia, Meigs, Athens, Washington, Monroe, Belmont, Jefferson, and Columbiana.

The Family History Library
Maps are listed in the Place Search of the Family History Library Catalog under:


 * OHIO - MAPS
 * OHIO, [COUNTY] - MAPS
 * OHIO, [COUNTY], [CITY] - MAPS

Web Sites

 * Ohio sectioned off into counties.
 * Printable maps are also available from the National Atlas of the United States.
 * Sanborn Maps
 * The USGenWeb Archives Digital Map Library