Twelve Mile Circle
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Smallest County in the USA, Part 1
What is the smallest county in the United States? It’s such a simple question but there are many ways to approach it. It really depends. Would it be the smallest parcel of land that actually carries the title “county?” Does it require a distinct, functional government with specific attributes? What about independent cities that provide…
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Canada – Close to the Border
This installment provides an instance where something sounded simple but turned out to be much more complicated than originally expected. Supposedly a disproportionately large percentage of the Canadian population lived near its southern border with the United States. So that should be a pretty easy thing to fact check, right? An Amorphous Band U.S. sources…
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Double Landlocked Countries
A landlocked country is one that does not have a coastline. Presently 43 landlocked countries exist so it’s not a particularly rare occurrence. However, two countries conform to “doubly landlocked” situations and that is much more unusual. Those occur when landlocked countries completely surround another landlocked country. Someone beginning a journey from a double landlocked…
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Unusual Geography of the Republic of The Gambia
Shape I don’t believe I’ve focused on the geography of an entire country before. However, the nation of The Gambia embodies so many interesting things to not focus some attention on it. First, notice the remarkable shape. It stretches long and narrow like a snake as it winds its way along the banks of the…
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Mapping Endangered Species
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Endangered Species Program uses maps extensively. In turn, this helps website visitors conceptualize the imperilment of specific animals and plants within their area. The primary visual interface comes through their Threatened and Endangered Species System (TESS). It lets users sort data stored in the system by various criteria, including by…
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New Urbanism Viewed through Maps
An urban design movement began to coalesce in the early 1980’s as a counterbalance to what planners and architects viewed as the sprawl of modern suburbs arising from the postwar environment. Practitioners called it “New Urbanism“. Organizations such as the Congress for the New Urbanism began to promote its hallmarks. Some of the features typical…
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River Headwaters and Sources
Long is the history of adventurers who explored distant lands and tangled jungles to find the true origin of mighty rivers. But rivers are not simple contiguous lines that trace back easily to a single spot. Rather they are widely spread watersheds that drain to a common outlet. There can be hundreds of liquid tendrils…
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USA States Called Commonwealths
The term “Commonwealth” breaks down into two basic components to understand its meaning. The “common” portion refers to the people or to the public. Meanwhile, “wealth” refers to well being or welfare. So commonwealth is a system of government that performs in the interests and well being of the people. It exists through their consent…
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Brunei Exclave
Once again I find myself pondering the mapping tools available through Google Analytics. I follow those daydreams to wherever they may lead. This time a visitor from Bandar Seri Begawan in Brunei Darussalam caught my eye. So mentally I set off for the Southeast Asian island of Borneo to see what I might find. A…
Latest Comments
In general, I wonder why navigating from the Atlantic Ocean to the Black Sea doesn’t count as inland navigation.
So fun to read all this information. We’ve just both a house in Beniarbeig, Spain and there is a bridge…
Re: East/West Carroll parishes, you’re close, but the real reason for the split was more political than demographic or cultural.…
What a great map! Thank you for your hard work!
Technically it’s not always correct to say EST/CST, etc…. but just an indication that I’m changing time zone is enough,…