New York City Atlases & Land Books: Queens
Avery Librarians
Atlases and land books, published by Perris, Bromley, Robinson, Beers, Sanborn, and others, are invaluable for tracing information on neighborhood development and on the history of a particular site. Most of these are fire insurance maps and were originally created to help insure particular properties against fire. They were published every few years and show what was standing at a particular time. Details can include the footprint and construction materials of residences, industrial sites, and commercial buildings; property boundaries including old farm lines; building use; house and block numbers; and names and widths of streets.
Several of these atlases and land book publishers offered a correction service which kept the books up to date with the hundreds of changes that took place every year. The service made necessary changes in buildings, lots, zoning, etc. as officially recorded by New York City. Atlases and land books in this guide that have been corrected are marked with an * and are listed under their updated year, with the original publication date noted.
Only atlases and land books from Avery Library and NYPL Digital Collections (New York Public Library) are included.
After connecting to items in the NYPL Digital Collections please scroll down to the middle of the page to the "View as Book" link to see the entire atlas or land book.
Items in Avery Classics are by appointment only. See the Avery Classics Collection webpage to request an appointment.
1873:
Atlas of Long Island, New York.
NYPL Digital Collections
Beers. Astoria: part of Long Island City, town of Newtown, Queens Co., L.I.
Avery Classics AA735 N4Q3 B38 FF
Digital copy
1890-1951:
ProQuest Sanborn Maps Geo Edition (1867-1970)
New York City [Bronx] [Kings (Brooklyn)] [Queens] [Richmond (Staten Island)].
This includes Manhattan, even though it is not listed.
Contents: 1890-1902; 1903-1919; 1908-1947; 1908-1952; New and additional sheets.
Queens County
Contents: 1898-1903; 1911-1917; 1925-1943; 1925-1934; 1947-1949; 1914-May 1951
1891:
Bien. Atlas of the Metropolitan District and adjacent country comprising the counties of New York, Kings, Richmond, Westchester and part of Queens in the State of New York, the county of Hudson and parts of the counties of Bergen, Passaic, Essex and Union in the State of New Jersey.
Avery AA9127 N4 B48 FF
Bien. Atlas of the Metropolitan District and adjacent country comprising the counties of New York, Kings, Richmond, Westchester and part of Queens in the State of New York, the county of Hudson and parts of the counties of Bergen, Passaic, Essex and Union in the State of New Jersey.
NYPL Digital Collections
Wolverton. Atlas of Queens Co., Long Island, New York.
NYPL Digital Collections
1901-1904:
Hyde. Atlas of the Borough of Queens. City of New York complete in Three Volumes. (3v.)
Contents: v.1 Fourth and Fifth Wards. Jamaica and Rockaway (1901)--v.2 First and Second Wards. Long Island City and Newtown (1903)--v.3 Third Ward. Flushing (1903)
NYPL Digital Collections
1907:
Hyde. Atlas of the Borough of Queens. City of New York complete in Three Volumes. (3v.)
Contents: v.1 Fourth and Fifth Wards. Jamaica and Rockway
NYPL Digital Collections
1909:
Bromley. Atlas of the City of New York, Borough of Queens, Long Island City, Newtown, Flushing, Jamaica, Far Rockaway, from actual surveys and official plans.
NYPL Digital Collections
1913:
Hyde. Atlas of the Borough of Queens. City of New York complete in Three Volumes. (3v.)
Contetnts: v.2 First and Second Wards. Long Island City and Newtown (orig. publ. in 1908)
NYPL Digital Collections
1913-1918:
Ullitz. Atlas of borough of Queens city of New York.
Contents: v.1 Westerly Part of Jamaica Part of Ward 4 (1913)--v.1A Easterly Part of Jamaica Part of Ward 4 (1918)--v.2 Long Island City. First Ward (1913)--v.2A Newtown Ward 2 (1915)
NYPL Digital Collections
1922:
Sanborn. Pier map of New York harbour, including Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn, Long Island City, Staten Island and New Jersey shore.
Avery Classics AA735 N4 1922 Sa54 FF
1931:
Map of the borough...City of New York: map of Topographical Bureau.
Contents: Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Richmond (Staten Island)
Avery AA9127 N4 M32 FFF
1933:
New York (N.Y.). Board of Estimate and Apportionment. Map of New York City.
Avery Classics AA9127 N4 N4861 FF
*New York (N.Y.). Board of Estimate and Apportionment. Map of New York City. (orig. publ. in 1924)
Avery AA9127 N4 N486 FF
1963:
New York (N.Y.). City Planning Commission. Sectional map of the City of New York.
Avery AA9127 N4 N488711 FFF
1965:
Sanborn. Land use 1964-65 [map of the City of New York].
Avery AA9127 N4L1 Sa5 FFF