The Layers of London website brings together historic maps of London, covering 2,000 years of history, with content that has been created and uploaded by community groups, individuals and organisations across the capital and beyond. This talk will explore the origins and development of the project, introducing some of the techniques used to create the maps, as well as some of the important maps layers themselves.

These include early printed maps of London, thematic maps such as Charles Booth’s poverty map and the Bomb Damage map of 1946, modern reconstructions of medieval and early modern London from the Historic Towns Trust, and some of the datasets contributed by heritage partners. The project also worked with a large number of local history partners, including borough archives and history groups, and the talk will highlight these and other contributions to the website, ranging from oral histories to archaeological reports to photographic records of lost buildings. Building Layers of London has been a collaborative effort, and we want to make more links with people and organisations to add to the 12,000 records contributed so far.

Professor Matthew Davies

Matthew Davies is Professor of Urban History and Executive Dean of Social Sciences, History and Philosophy at Birkbeck, University of London. His research focuses on medieval and early modern cities, particularly the history of London. He has directed or co-directed a large number of research projects that have addressed particular questions in urban history, including the impact of demographic change, law and commerce, the physical environment, trade and migration. He is particularly interested in the role of digital tools to interrogate and communicate the history of cities, and is the director of the Layers of London project, which combines digital mapping with public engagement to uncover diverse histories of London and its peoples over many centuries. This has involved working with local government, museums, archives and community groups to create and share resources, and work with projects that have focussed on place-making and identity in the contemporary city. Full profile here.