Maps Research Guide

Here you'll find more information on how to locate maps related to parks and recreation. As a Regional Depository Library for the state of Montana, the Mansfield Library houses many maps produced by agencies that do work in natural resources management: the National Park Service, the U.S. Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, etc. Contact Ben Chiewphasa, Government Information Librarian (ben.chiewphasa@umontana.edu), if you have any questions regarding government documents and maps.

A view of Grinnell and Salamander Glaciers from Grinnell Glacier Overlook off the Highline Trail. Photo by Tim Rains, National Park Service.

Visiting Glacier National Park for the first time during summer break? Needing to do research on easily accessible trails in Missoula's neighboring Bitterroot National Forest? The Mansfield Library houses a robust collection of maps that you can check out for your inner adventurer! Here are some tips on using the the library's search engine's (OneSearch) Advanced Search functionality to find loanable outdoor recreation maps:

• Use "Outdoor recreation" as a subject term, your area of interest as a keyword ("Any field"), and filter by "Maps" (as a "Resource Type"). We recommend that you also filter by "UM Physical Items." The following image captures a scenario involving searching for physical Helena National Forest recreational maps:

• Loanable maps are all located on Level 1. Maps housed in Archives & Special Collections (Level 4) can be viewed in-house but are not loanable. However, there are certain maps with two (or more) copies in both Level 1 and Level 4. To double check, make sure you click on records in OneSearch if you see the following wording: "and other locations."

Through the Federal Depository Library Program, the Mansfield Library is proud to provide you access to a variety of Forest Service-produced visitor maps, National Forest atlases, and wilderness maps that cover the entire United States. Some examples below: