-------- Original Message --------
Subject:        Re: Map cataloging research experience
Date:   Thu, 22 Jan 2009 12:22:26 -0500
From:   Paige Andrew <[log in to unmask]>
To:     [log in to unmask]
References:     <[log in to unmask]>



Thank you for sharing your adventure with all of us Tiffany! It
highlights the fact that we map catalogers sometimes must spend large
chunks of time, even hours or days, to produce an accurate
description of a map! It is both the boon and the bane of this
format, it is what makes it interesting, possibly much more
interesting, than say, working with monographs. Of course, the other
end of the pendulum applies as well, sometimes you can easily create
an original bib. record in just a few minutes because you have all
the "pieces of the puzzle" at hand. I still get asked fairly often
"what is the standard for how many records a map cataloger can be
expected to create in a day" and your note reinforces what I always
have to say, that it depends -- on the cataloger's overall experience
with the format, whether the maps being described have all vs. only a
few of the descriptive elements in hand, whether the cataloger is
expected to do things like authority work, classification, subject
analysis, whether they have access to the right tools or not, etc.
and so much more. To those of you on the list who are
supervisors/administrators please understand that there is no de
facto number that the typical person should be expected to hit when
it comes to map cataloging, and this note illustrates it very well.

Sincerely,

Paige Andrew
long-time maps cataloger

At 12:01 PM 1/22/2009, you wrote:
>-------- Original Message --------
>Subject:        Map cataloging research experience
>Date:   Thu, 22 Jan 2009 08:57:04 -0800
>From:   Nagle, Tiffany <[log in to unmask]>
>To:     [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]>
>
>
>
>I just wanted to share a rewarding experience I recently had trying to
>catalog a local map. Being relatively new to the world of map
>cataloging, I never realized how much work can sometimes be necessary to
>catalog them!
>
>I have a donated copy of a land plat map for our county that had been
>cut up and reassembled into book format for an insurance company. During
>the cutting/assembly process, any information about possible dates in
>the margins was cut off. OCLC showed multiple versions of the map by the
>same surveyor ranging from 1930 to 1944. So, I decided to take a closer
>look at the map to see if I could narrow down the date based on
>landmarks shown on the map. I first looked at the existence of certain
>highways, which gave me a range of 1937-1964. Then, the existence of a
>certain oil company narrowed my possibilities down to 1938-1956. Then I
>found an airport that was built in 1940. Getting closer, but still not
>there! Then I found a designation for the California Institution for
>Women in Tehachapi, which appeared on the map as "abandoned". Doing a
>bit of research, I discovered that this prison was abandoned after a
>major earthquake in July 1952, and was then rebuilt and reopened as a
>men's prison in 1954. Aha! That was a pretty good, narrow date range,
>but I still wanted more. The final, crowning moment came when I saw the
>representation of a dam that was completed in 1953. Eureka! To double
>check, I noticed that records for earlier versions of the map showed the
>creator's name with the designation "County Surveyor", but my copy just
>showed his name by itself. I called the County Surveyor's office and
>they were able to verify that he retired in 1950. So, when this map was
>probably produced in 1953-early 1954, he was no longer the County
>Surveyor! Yeah!
>
>You know, I love being a cataloger, but I sometimes miss the research
>work from when I was a reference librarian. But that background can
>certainly come in handy sometimes.
>
>Anyway, I just wanted to share this experience, since people who aren't
>catalogers or map people just don't understand the thrill of getting all
>the pieces to fit together!
>
>Tiffany Nagle
>
>Bibliographic Control Librarian
>
>Kern County Library
>
>Bakersfield, Calif.