Originally created to assess fire insurance liabilities, Sanborn Maps offer an extraordinarily detailed window into the past. For researchers and local history enthusiasts, these maps are invaluable tools for tracking how our neighborhoods and built environment have evolved over the decades.
The interactive map below features a composite of hundreds of individual Sanborn maps, seamlessly stitched together to cover much of Beverly, Morgan Park, and parts of Washington Heights.
(Note: Additional maps covering Mount Greenwood and the eastern sections of Morgan Park can be accessed through the Library of Congress or Chicago Public Library.)
Note: The 1910 Beverly Hills covers areas to the east (areas to the west were generally too sparse at the time). The 1936 map covers Beverly Hills only.