Historic maps of Bath and North East Somerset are now freely available online for the first time, thanks to the Know Your Place West of England project, supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund.
The project’s website (www.kypwest.org.uk) displays modern and historic maps side by side, along with archive images and links, so users can explore their neighbourhood and see how it has transformed over time.
The collaborative project is led by South Gloucestershire Council, working with key partners including Bath & North East Somerset Council, which runs Bath Record Office.
Councillor Patrick Anketell-Jones (Con, Lansdown), Cabinet Member for Economic Development, said: “This free online resource will be enthusiastically welcomed, not just by professional and amateur historians, but anyone locally who is just interested in the place they live.
“The facility offered by this website to compare different historic maps side by side is a big step forward in extending the fascination of old maps to everyone.”
Nerys Watts, Head of Heritage Lottery Fund South West, said: “Know Your Place West of England will be a fantastic resource, bringing together the history of this area so people can discover the ever-changing make-up of the places where they live and work.
“If you have bought a National Lottery ticket recently, you have helped to support these types of projects that are preserving the precious heritage of our communities for future generations. Thank you.”
Four historic basemap layers of Bath and North East Somerset have been added to the resource – including Goad Insurance Plans for central Bath of 1887 – allowing users to explore some of the most famous landmarks from the district’s heritage in great detail, from the elegant World Heritage city of Bath, to the coal mines of Radstock.
The website also features historic maps supplied by the British Library and National Library Scotland, and will soon include Historic Environment Record data from Bath & North East Somerset Council.
Users can upload and share their own information about the area, helping to build a rich and diverse community map of local heritage for everyone, from schoolchildren to family historians, from planners to enthusiasts of community heritage.
More than 50 project volunteers are working hard to prepare further historic maps, which will be added onto Know Your Place Bath and North East Somerset over the coming months.
The website will continue to grow as more resources, including enclosure and tithe maps, and drawings and photographs from archive and museum collections, are added.
Local museums are identifying items from their collections to appear in an upcoming touring exhibition, which will visit Bath Central Library and Radstock Museum – helping celebrate the district’s rich heritage.
Other areas now mapped include Wiltshire, South Gloucestershire, Bristol and Gloucestershire. Over the coming months, the Know Your Place West of England project will extend to include the neighbouring areas of North Somerset and Somerset too.
The project was awarded £379,800 by the Heritage Lottery Fund, with generous match-funding and in-kind support from local authorities and heritage groups within the region, including £5,000 match-funding from lead partner South Gloucestershire Council.