Sanborn® Fire Insurance Maps of Muncie, Indiana,
provide an excellent classroom resource for teaching United States history. (Teachers can access copies of the maps from the University Libraries’ Digital Media Repository). The maps, dating back to 1883, can be used to identify the growth and evolution of industries and structures over time.
Students working individually or in small groups can analyze specific areas of the maps to interpret changes over time, researching various social and economic factors affecting those changes.