Step 2: Find your home on an old map
What can maps tell me?
Old maps are a crucial tool for the house historian. They can:
Help you understand an approximate age of your house and surrounding houses.
They also can help you discover and relevant name changes of local towns, roads and buildings.
They can help you learn what the land was used before, changes in land use, construction of new roads, railways,
Where can I find maps online?
The National Library of Scotland has been leading the way in terms of digital access to its map collections for a while now. Their collection includes maps covering all of the British Isles (not just Scotland!). And the best thing is, all of the maps are free to access.
Go onto the website and type in your postcode. You should be able to see a range of maps from different periods. If your house is not on a particular map, you know that your home was built after that date. With enough maps from different periods, you can narrow down the time when your property was built.
