Ideas for Community Mapping

Your group could consider mapping your community as it was at a certain date in the past. You could collect photographs, talk to people to learn about your community in the past. Decide on the time you would like to learn about: 1950’s, 1960’s, etc.

• Brainstorm things that your group already knows about your community at that time.
• Brainstorm questions that you would like to ask about your community in the past. For example:
  • Where was the first school building, church, community hall, Coop building and other buildings?
  • Where were the houses located?
  • Who lived in which houses back then?
  • What happened to the buildings that no longer exist?
  • Were any buildings thought to be haunted?
  • How many vehicles were there then?
  • Did people live in camps near the community?
  • What stories are there about the community in those days?
• Create a large map of your community at a particular date that shows all this information.
• Collect old photographs from people in the community or from museums or archives. If you get original photographs from private people, treat them carefully. Scan or copy them and return them quickly to their owners.
• Start sketching a rough version of your map on a large sheet of paper – 6’ X 8’ or larger.
• Invite people who knew the community on the date you have chosen. Talk with them about where the roads went, what buildings existed and where. Sketch in the information onto the map.
• When your information is as complete as possible, create a final copy of the map on good quality paper. Or draw and paint it on a large piece of plywood.
• Make the map colourful and interesting. Add scanned or copied photographs. Laminate the photographs and glue them to the map beside the areas of town they relate to.
• Translate the information into English if it seems appropriate or necessary in your community.
• Hold a community event – invite people to come and see your map and talk about what they remember of those days. If you have slides or videos, you could show them at the same time.
• Preserve your map; it could be valuable to future generations. Mount it under Plexiglas or laminate it, if possible. Take detailed photographs of it.