Panoramic maps depicting cities and towns were popular during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Also known as bird’s-eye views, the drawings were created as if viewed from the air. Some artists hovered over towns in balloons to take photos on which to base their sketches. Over 1,500 illustrated panoramic maps are available online through the Library of Congress. The Birdseye Map of Ipswich was created by George E. Norris (1855-1926), a resident of Brockton, Massachusetts, who began drawing panoramic maps in 1882.

Click on the 1893 map of Ipswich, and keep clicking to zoom in and find your house!