LMEC at the National Council for the Social Studies conference

In the cold November rain, over 3,000 social studies teachers from around the country gathered in Boston for the annual National Council for the Social Studies conference. The LMEC Education team welcomed educators to the Leventhal Center for three days of workshops and open houses. We appreciated teachers’ excitement about the collection and our work creating teaching material on social studies themes. It was equally important for our team to get feedback from teachers directly, echoing what colleagues in Greater Boston have emphasized: teachers need resources and programs that they can readily adapt to their classrooms.

In this article, Director of Education Nicole Claris reflects on the experience of NCSS Boston and looks ahead to new educational offerings from the Leventhal Center.

Read the full article → 

From the LMEC Archive

Think you can name all the towns in Massachusetts? Test your abilities with this game and learn about the creation process with this article. In more of a literary mood? Read about the poems hidden on maps in our collections.

Our website features articles written by our staff, guest curators, Small Grants recipients, and interns which explore our collections and research initiatives with unique perspectives and insight. We encourage you to browse the full archive, where you can learn about everything from the history of Boston’s LGBTQ+ landmarks to what pictorial maps of Americana can tell us about American identity.

Browse our articles → 

Virtual: Putting Family History on the Map · December 11, 6 pm ET

Join Julia Williams, Gallery & Communications Coordinator at the Leventhal Map & Education Center, to discuss the use of historic maps for genealogical research together with BPL Research Services. Julia has experience working with New England Historical Genealogical Society as a genealogist on 10 Million Names, a project aimed at recovering the names of the estimated ten million men, women, and children of African descent who were enslaved in pre- and post-colonial America. She will also provide a demo of Atlascope, which overlays historic property maps on top of modern-day ones so you can easily compare past and present.

Register for the event → 

Newsletter Trivia: Copley Square Museums

During the early years of Back Bay’s development, Copley Square was established as a museum hub, before several institutions left the area for larger buildings. Along with the BPL and the Boston Society of Natural History (the predecessor of the Museum of Science), what other major museum was in Copley Square between 1876 and 1909?

1. Boston Athenaeum
2. Boston Children’s Museum
3. Museum of Fine Arts
4. The Institute of Contemporary Art

The answer to the question of what park feature was circled in the 1917 Atlas of the Charles River Esplanade was Gymnastics grounds.

Correct answers will be included in a random draw—the winner will receive the next three Map of the Month club postcards for free. Congratulations to our last winner, Patricia! In order to enter, make sure you follow us on Instagram or Facebook and direct message or email us the answer to the following question. We’ll accept answers until December 16 at 9 am ET.

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Shop (and Support) LMEC for the Holidays!

This holiday season, shop for all of the history, geography, and cartography lovers in your life in the Leventhal Map & Education Center online gift shop. With four new maps added to the shop this month, there’s something new for everyone! Use the code LMECHOLIDAY for 15% off your total order.

All orders must be placed by December 15 for delivery within the continental United States by December 25.

Visit the gift shop →