Podcast Summary: Family Tree Magazine Podcast

Episode: Best Websites – Study the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries with Lisa Louise Cooke
Date: January 15, 2025
Host: Lisa Louise Cooke

Episode Overview

This episode of the Family Tree Magazine Podcast, hosted by Lisa Louise Cooke, explores the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries website, a powerful and free resource from the Newberry Library in Chicago. The episode walks listeners through the importance and use of this atlas for genealogical research, particularly for tracing shifting county lines that affect where ancestral records may be found. Lisa highlights website features, how to access and utilize boundary data both online and offline, and offers practical advice to maximize its value in family history projects.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The Importance of Historical County Boundaries in Genealogy

• Place and Time Intersect:
  County boundaries often changed over time; knowing the county at the exact time an ancestor lived is crucial for finding correct records.

  “So it's not just place, but it comes together in conjunction with timeframe. And that's really key because sometimes these boundaries change.” (Lisa, 03:17)

• Beyond County Changes:
  The website not only tracks county lines, but also unsuccessful county proposals, changes in county names, temporary attachments, and non-county areas.

  “It also includes non county areas, unsuccessful authorizations for new counties, changes in county names and organization...” (Lisa, 05:10)

2. Features of the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries Website

• Scope and Authority:
  The project covers all 50 states plus D.C., drawing data from primary legal sources (cession laws and similar documents).
  Finalized in June 2010, with comprehensive data updates in 2012.
• Relevance:
  Continues to be highly valuable despite age because it captures essential data not readily available elsewhere.

3. Ways to Use the Atlas Website

A. Interactive Web Browser Tool

• Accessing the Website:
  The URL may be complex, but a general search for "Atlas of Historical County Boundaries" finds it easily.
• How to Navigate:
  • Zoom, pan, and view the map in fullscreen.
  • Hover over any county to see its name, effective dates, and border-changing events in a pop-up box.
  • Use the print feature to capture current views or important information.
• Example:
  Focusing on New Mexico, Lisa notes the ability to jump to any significant date in county history and see changes instantly.

  “When I clicked on New Mexico, it brought me to the default of the first recorded boundaries. 1850… For every time there was a change recorded… you will see a date listed.” (Lisa, 11:12)

B. National Data Map

• Offers a big-picture, single-color map for national county boundary context.
• Includes historical commentary and metadata but is less suited for fine-grain genealogical searches.

C. Boundary Animations

• Provides an animated, visual demonstration of changing county lines over time.
  Mostly educational or for demo purposes.

4. Downloadable Data and Third-Party Use

• Download Options:
  Data can be downloaded in different formats (KMZ for Google Earth, GIS formats, and PDF).

  “I use this all the time in Google Earth… Google Earth is also a free downloadable software program… You can do so much genealogy research and storytelling in Google Earth.” (Lisa, 18:25)

• Customizability:
  You can download for only selected states or the entire U.S., with or without Alaska and Hawaii. Lisa suggests activating only the necessary states in Google Earth to keep the tool responsive.

5. Copyright and Usage

• Free Use Policy:
  All data is free, public domain, and can be used without restriction in personal or commercial projects.

  “Bottom line, this is copyright free. It is available for you to download and to use any way that you wish for your genealogical research.” (Lisa, 23:24)

6. Why This Site is Essential for Genealogists

• The Atlas is “absolutely one of the best websites out there for genealogy, even though it's not technically a genealogy website.”
• It fills gaps when record searches turn up empty, helping genealogists know exactly where to look when boundaries have shifted.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the site's significance:

  “If you have kind of a sticky area you're working on in your family tree and it's a little unclear what the location was at that time... this website is so valuable because you can come here, navigate the map and put it in conjunction with time frame and find out what was going on.”
  (Lisa, 06:44)

• On integrating the resource with other genealogy tools:

  “Not only will you have all these counties outlined for you on the Google Earth map, but then you can start adding place marks and icons and pictures and all this information about your family...”
  (Lisa, 19:53)

• On accessibility and openness:

  “The data used in the Atlas Project is readily available to download and to be consulted, reviewed, and reused for any lawful purpose, commercial or non commercial, without licensing or permission fees...”
  (Lisa, 22:45)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [01:20] – Introduction to the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries website
• [05:10] – What the project covers beyond just county lines
• [08:55] – Interactive map features and how to use them
• [11:12] – Example of looking up New Mexico county boundary changes
• [13:45] – National data map and animations
• [16:40] – Downloadable options (KMZ, GIS, PDF) and usage in Google Earth
• [20:01] – Choosing which state data files to download
• [22:45] – Copyright information and unrestricted reuse
• [24:44] – Lisa’s endorsement and closing remarks

Final Takeaways

• The Atlas of Historical County Boundaries is an essential, user-friendly, and entirely free resource for genealogists struggling with the challenge of changing county lines across American history.
• The site offers multiple ways to explore this shifting geographic landscape—via interactive maps, downloadable files, and even boundary animations.
• Its compatibility with platforms like Google Earth opens new doors for mapping and storytelling in genealogy.
• Most importantly, it empowers researchers to track family records accurately through the often-confusing web of historical counties.
• Lisa Louise Cooke strongly encourages all family historians to incorporate this site into their toolkit:

  “This is absolutely one of the best websites out there for genealogy... we're looking for the tools that we need to accomplish the goals that we have in our genealogy research.” (Lisa, 23:35)