Putting the past in its place: the Great Britain Historical GIS

Abstract

Since late 1994 a major project has been underway to capture the changing administrative boundaries of England & Wales from the mid-C19 to 1973 in a Geographic Information System. We plan to add Scotland and Ireland working with collaborators. The time period stretches from the origins of 'modern' statistical data collection in the early 19th century to the 1970s Redcliffe-Maud local government reforms, after which digital boundary data become available. Our work is creating a new framework enabling new research into the socio-economic structure of Britain as it changed through time and space over the past 150 years.