================================================ MAPS-L ** MAPS-L ** MAPS-L ** MAPS-L ** MAPS-L ================================================ Subject: FW: World War II-era maps Date: Thu, 28 Jul 2005 From: Youngblood, Dawn <[log in to unmask]> To: Maps, Air Photo & Geospatial Systems Forum <[log in to unmask]>, Angie Cope, AGSL <[log in to unmask]> CC: Milazzo, Joe <[log in to unmask]> **CROSSPOSTED TO GOVDOC-L** Southern Methodist University in Dallas, TX owns approximately 27,000 collection of World War II-era maps. These captured maps form the foundation of the University's Edwin J. Foscue Map Library. As a geographic expert with the Army Map Service (AMS) during World War II, Dr. Edwin J. Foscue participated in one of the most significant intelligence campaigns of that conflict -- namely, the production of state-of-the-art mapping for nearly every region of the world, the almost constant revision of existing mapping, and the rapid deployment of these maps to our military forces abroad. The sheer number of maps produced for the war effort, coupled with the large quantity of cartographic information captured by advancing Allied Forces, presented the Army Map Service with a problem of surplus by the war's end. According to Dr. Foscue himself: "For a while it seemed as if the Army would destroy all maps it had published except for a few sets which would be kept in various government agencies in Washington. Some of the geographers then in Washington with these agencies, asked if map collections could not be made available to a number of key depositories throughout the country, with varying degrees of priority. Schools on the top priority list were selected (1) because of their interest in establishing a map library and their promise to house these maps properly so that they could be available for reference, and (2) because of their regional strategic location. Thus Southern Methodist University which had been interested in establishing a map library from the start of this program and was well located in the Southwest was able to secure one of the top distribution priorities in the United States." In the interests of preserving and enhancing access to these map holdings, SMU is interesting in learning: 1) which institutions were likewise designated as "key depositories"; 2) the precise relationship of the AMS depository program (active from 1946 until 1954) to the process described by Dr. Foscue, that is, did all original AMS depositories receive some captured mapping? 3) which institutions may have acquired these maps under other circumstances; 4) how other institutions have established physical as well as intellectual control over their WWII-era map collections. If your institution own a collection like SMU's, or any WWII-era mapping, or has any further information regarding the AMS program, you input would be most welcome. Please reply directly to Joe Milazzo, SMU's Government Information and Map Resources Librarian. Contact information is provided below. Thank you. Joe Milazzo Librarian, Government Information and Map Resources Central University Libraries Southern Methodist University PO Box 0135 / 6414 Hilltop Lane Dallas, TX 75275-0135 214-768-2561 Fax: 214-768-1842 mailto:[log in to unmask] http://www.smu.edu/cul/gir/index.html http://worldwar2.smu.edu -- ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~