German Empire Topographic Maps at 1:100,000 Scale, 1878-1909

675 map sheets constitute the first large-scale, nationwide topographic survey of the German Empire. The Bundesamt für Kartographie und Geodäsie produced this map series, known as the General Staff Card, between 1878 and 1909. Each sheet covers an area of approximately 35 km by 28 km and was designed in polyhedral projection.

Use Cases

• Analyze historical land use and settlement patterns based on the detailed topographic features.
• Study the evolution of cartographic techniques based on the polyhedral projection and sheet design.
• Georeference historical features for modern GIS analysis based on the precise 1:100,000 scale.
• Research regional infrastructure and transportation networks of the German Empire based on the map content.

Strengths

• Covers the entire territory of the historical German Empire in 675 standardized sheets.
• Provides a consistent, large-scale (1:100,000) topographic view from a specific historical period (1878-1909).
• Produced by a national mapping agency (Bundesamt für Kartographie und Geodäsie), suggesting authoritative sourcing.

Limitations

• Last updated 1936-01-01 00:00:00; freshness should be verified.
• Description metadata is limited; actual data quality and file formats require manual inspection after download.
• The map series originally appeared in monochrome, which may limit feature differentiation compared to modern color maps.

Provenance

Source

Bundesamt für Kartographie und Geodäsie

Collection Method

Cartographic survey and production by the states of Prussia, Bavaria, Württemberg, and Saxony.

Time Range

1878 to 1909

Freshness

1936-01-01 00:00:00

Geography

German Empire (historical borders)