Using the Portal

Online mapping tools provide a range of functionality that can provide rich and informative research and entertainment experiences. With our map portal, you can explore the history of Athens, compare historical images to see how the city has changed over time, and create your own customized maps of Athens and its environs for whatever purpose you have in mind.

Once you’re inside the portal, the tools available at the top right of your screen allow you to manipulate and enhance what you’re viewing. You can select multiple maps and/or historical images to overlay with one another and discover how areas or buildings “fit” within different historical periods. You can draw on and add “pins” to your map, or you can measure distances between different points on the map. When you’re done creating, you can print out your custom map for use in academic papers, reports or any use you wish.

Below are a couple examples of how you can use this mapping tool, and there is a detailed help page that describes how to use each function.

The below window has overlaid aerial photos of Athens from 1944 and 2013. Click the icon at the top right corner of the window to activate the swipe tool and then move the center bar right and left to compare how the city changed over the intervening 69 years.

Some of our datasets are loaded with geotagged information that allows you to research aspects of what you’re seeing. For example, in the image below, a 2018 drone image of the Old Athens Cemetery has been dropped into an 1874 map of Athens (zoom out to display the map). Not only does this give you an idea of how the area around the cemetery has changed, but you can click on individual pins within the cemetery and learn what we know of the remains that were interred there.

Be creative! Explore everything this powerful tool has to offer, and we encourage you to share your results with UGA’s Center for Geospatial Research.