Visit 1889 Richmond with interactive map

This is a great opportunity for residents to check out what their neighborhood looked like in 1889.

February 19, 2015; 9:56 AM • by Richard Hayes

VCU Libraries has launched an interactive version of a Richmond map atlas from 1889, giving a look at how different the city was back then, and allows online visitors to compare it with the city today (via an integration with Google Maps). It also features a number of photos and illustrations from that era, as it links with VCU Libraries’ extensive collections of historical images of Richmond.

The map is from the “Atlas of the City of Richmond,” which was published in 1889 by the Philadelphia firm of George William Baist. The original Baist Atlas is made up of 20 panels, each 18 1/2 inches tall and 28 inches wide, mapping all areas of Richmond, including parts of Henrico and Chesterfield counties, as well part of as what was then the city of Manchester on Richmond’s Southside.

This is a great opportunity for residents to check out what their neighborhood looked like in 1889.

Image: VCU Libraries