Genealogy Course

Mapping Your Ancestry: Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps

Unlock the secrets of your family's past with our comprehensive genealogy course, "Mapping Your Ancestry: Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps." This course is designed to teach you how to effectively locate, interpret and use Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps for ancestry mapping and provide new avenues of research to trace your family's history. These Sanborn Maps, originally created to assess fire insurance risks, are invaluable resources for genealogists. By the end of this course, you will have the skills to interpret these maps and integrate them with other genealogical records, providing a vivid picture of your ancestors' lives and environments.

Our genealogy course covers everything from accessing and analyzing Sanborn Maps to creating detailed ancestry maps. You'll learn to uncover hidden details about your family's history and visualize their neighborhoods through time. Whether you're a beginner or an experienced genealogist, this course offers valuable insights and practical techniques to enhance your research. Join us and embark on a journey to mapping your ancestry with precision and depth.
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What's included?

Authored by professional genealogists, our Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps course provides a flexible, self-paced learning experience. This course empowers you to elevate your genealogy research skills, adding valuable context and depth to your ancestors' stories.
  • 5 Modules
  • 14 Comprehensive Lessons
  • Practical and Interactive Skills Applications
  • Historical Case Studies
  • Personalized Skills Certificate

Expand Your Knowledge

Acquire the essential skills to effectively utilize Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps in your genealogical and historical research. This course will guide you through interpreting these detailed maps, enabling you to uncover rich historical context and gain deeper insights into your ancestors' lives and communities. You'll learn to analyze map features, integrate findings with other records, and create comprehensive ancestry maps that bring your family history to life.

Enhance Your Research

Our course on Sanborn Maps opens up a wealth of new records and avenues for enhancing your genealogical research. By learning how to read and interpret these maps, you'll uncover details about churches, social organizations, and places of business that were integral to your ancestors' communities. This deeper understanding can lead you to parish records, membership logs, and business directories that are often overlooked in traditional genealogy research. These additional records provide a fuller picture of your ancestors' daily lives, social interactions, and economic activities, enriching your family history with context and depth that go beyond mere dates and names.

Course contents

Frequently asked questions

How can Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps enhance my genealogy research?

Sanborn Maps provide detailed insights into the neighborhoods and living conditions of your ancestors, revealing aspects of their daily lives that are not captured in standard records.

Where can I find Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps?

These maps are available in various online databases, local libraries, and archives. Our course will guide you to the best resources for accessing these valuable documents.

What skills will I gain from this genealogy course?

You will learn how to read and interpret historical maps, integrate them with other genealogical records, and create detailed ancestry maps that provide a richer understanding of your family history.

Do I need any prior experience in genealogy research to take this course?

No prior experience is required. This course is designed for both beginners and experienced genealogists looking to enhance their research skills with new tools.
Meet the instructors for the

Mapping Your Ancestry:
Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps course

Cyndi Harlin 

A professional genealogist for almost two decades, Cyndi holds a certificate in Genealogical Research from Boston University and is a graduate of ProGen. She is passionate about both history and genealogy, and finds assisting clients with their ancestral mysteries deeply rewarding. Cyndi’s areas of research are wide-ranging, but include the eras of the Civil War, Reconstruction and the ensuing westward migration leading up to Victorian America and the Great Depression.

Ericka Grizzard

Ericka is an educator, writer and professional genealogist with over 15 years research experience. She has a Master’s Degree in teaching with classroom experience in both history and science education. She conducts research throughout the United States and Canada, with an emphasis on modern military research, including World War I and World War II, and in 19th & 20th century immigration to the United States.

Our students love us

I have taken various courses about maps, but this gives me more context to build on, hands on experience and details to make me think outside the box. Thank you
Vicki
While I have used Sanborn Fire Maps in the past in my research, this class showed me how much important information I had not completely understood before. The class taught me how to better understand and more importantly, how to interpret the information provided in each map, how to use them in conjunction with other resources and how to incorporate it into my research, Definitely recommend this course for a better understanding of this valuable resource!
Deb
Fantastic course covering Sanborn maps and how to use them for genealogical and historical research. Everything was covered, from how to access and interpret the maps, to utilizing other resources in conjunction with the maps, in order to bring a community to life.
Karen

Our motto is

Genealogy Education Done Better!

At Trace we are committed to providing accessible, engaging, and accurate educational resources that cater to both novice family historians and seasoned genealogists. We are dedicated to creating a comprehensive genealogy learning platform that bridges the gap between generations, cultures, and histories. Through a blend of innovative technology, expert insights, and a supportive learning environment, we aim to facilitate the unlocking of personal histories, fostering a deeper understanding and appreciation of our collective human story.