Historical Forestry Boundaries and Patrol Routes in Alberta

Historical Forestry-Related Features contain geospatial data on forest reserves, timber berths, fire patrol routes, and administrative boundaries in Alberta from the early 20th century. The collection includes features such as Dominion Forestry Branch forest surveys from 1910-1915 and Alberta Forest Service district boundaries circa 1938. It was published by the Government of Alberta and last updated in March 2026.

Use Cases

• Analyze the evolution of Forest Reserve Boundaries from 1900 to 1930 to study land use policy changes.
• Map early Ground and Aerial Fire Patrol Routes to understand historical wildfire response strategies.
• Compare Timber Berth boundaries (1910-1923) with modern forestry concessions for longitudinal studies.
• Visualize the locations of DFB Forest Surveys (1910-1915) to assess early scientific data collection efforts.

Strengths

• Covers a multi-decade time range from 1900 to 1938 for longitudinal analysis.
• Includes multiple distinct feature types: boundaries, routes, stations, and survey points.

Limitations

• Spatial accuracy is not guaranteed, with noted inaccuracies ranging from hundreds of meters to several kilometers for features digitized from old maps.
• No spatial accuracy tests were conducted on any of the data, limiting reliability for precise geospatial analysis.

Provenance

Source

Government of Alberta, derived from historical records of the Dominion Forestry Branch and Alberta Forest Service.

Collection Method

Features were digitized from historical maps and derived from land locations in the Alberta Township System (ATS).

Time Range

1900 to 1938

Freshness

Data was last updated in March 2026, but the underlying historical content is static.

Geography

Alberta, Canada