Empires rise and fall. Glaciers disappear. Languages and religions spread from one region to another. Simple dirt paths become busy highways and railways. Modest buildings give way to soaring skyscrapers. And you remember what your neighborhood used to look like. All of it belongs on OpenHistoricalMap.

Our growing community of volunteer contributors includes amateur and professional historians, OpenStreetMap and Wikipedia contributors, GIS specialists, and ordinary people knowledgeable about their surroundings. We are passionate about documenting the world and helping real-world communities tell their stories. To learn more about the community, consult our extensive wiki documentation, visit our discussion forum, read the user diaries, and follow our Mastodon or Bluesky account.

You can start contributing to the map today by creating a free account. We also accept charitable donations through OpenStreetMap U.S., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with tax-exempt status. Your generous donation will go directly toward keeping OpenHistoricalMap running smoothly for everyone.

The map on our homepage is just one of many ways to experience the historical information we’ve collected. The underlying data is available for reuse as a download or through various free APIs compatible with open source software.

The data is in the public domain unless noted otherwise. You are free to use it for any purpose, without any restrictions. Nonetheless, we greatly appreciate any credit or citation you provide to OpenHistoricalMap. For more details and acknowledgments, see Copyright and Acknowledgements.

This site and related services are operated by an informal group affiliated with OpenStreetMap U.S. on behalf of the community. Use of all OpenHistoricalMap services is subject to our Terms of Use, Acceptable Use Policies, and Privacy Policy.

Please contact the OpenHistoricalMap team with any licensing, copyright, or other legal questions.

OpenHistoricalMap® is a registered trademark (U.S. Reg. No. 90,019,364). OpenStreetMap and the magnifying glass logo are registered trademarks of the OpenStreetMap Foundation.

OpenHistoricalMap is a charter project of OpenStreetMap U.S., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization affiliated with the OpenStreetMap Foundation. Technical development is supported by GreenInfo Network and Development Seed.