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HISTORICAL COASTAL WETLANDS OF PRUDENCE ISLAND
Citation:
McGovern, D AND C Pesch. HISTORICAL COASTAL WETLANDS OF PRUDENCE ISLAND. Presented at Rhode Island Natural History Survey Confernece, Cranston, RI, March 7, 2003.
Description:
Historical maps are useful tools to assess long-term change. The topographic surveys (T-charts) produced by the U.S. Coast and Geodedetic Survey, predecessor of the U.S.Geologic Survey (USGS), provide a rich source of information on historical environmental features dating back to the 1830s. These surveys were produced using state of the art technology and methods for that time. A survey of Prudence Island, RI, was selected to show the techniques needed to work with T-charts and other historical maps. This poster shows a georeferenced historical survey (1866) of Prudence Island as a backdrop, with modern wetlands and coastline from RIGIS eelgrass coverage superimposed on it. The steps used to georeference the historical survey to a modern coordinate system are shown and the technical challenges of working with historical maps are discussed. More uses of historical maps are shown in a companion poster (presented at this RINHS 2003 conference), "Using Historical Maps to Assess Change in Wetlands of Narragansett Bay."