The civic survey of Greater London: social mapping, planners and urban space in the early twentieth century

Hewitt, L. (2012) The civic survey of Greater London: social mapping, planners and urban space in the early twentieth century. Journal of Historical Geography, 38(3), pp. 247-262. (doi: 10.1016/j.jhg.2012.04.003)

Abstract

This paper examines work conducted between 1915 and 1919 by a group of architects and planners based at the Royal Institute of British Architects. The project, called the Civic Survey of Greater London, and the substantial collection of maps and diagrams that resulted from it are currently unknown in histories of mapping and planning, thus this paper offers a preliminary account and analysis of the work. The paper begins by assessing the development of surveying and mapping techniques in the nineteenth century with the aim of situating the Survey within broader historical trajectories. The following section of the paper examines the immediate context for the Survey, in particular the place of Patrick Geddes and his ideas. The third part of the paper focuses on the work of the Survey itself. The fourth part draws out key analytical threads in dialogue with a number of the maps of the Survey. The emphasis placed here is on exploring lines of continuity between the Civic Survey of Greater London and earlier techniques of representation and governmentality. The concluding section reflects briefly on the reasons for the Survey's subsequent relative obscurity and the importance of the project for later traditions of surveying.

• Item Type: Articles
• Additional Information: NOTICE: this is the author’s version of a work that was accepted for publication in Journal of Historical Geography. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. A definitive version was subsequently published in Journal of Historical Geography, 38, 3, 2012. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jhg.2012.04.003
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Hewitt, Dr Lucy
• Authors: Hewitt, L.
• Subjects: D History General and Old World > D History (General) > D501 World War I; D History General and Old World > DA Great Britain; G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GA Mathematical geography. Cartography; H Social Sciences > HN Social history and conditions. Social problems. Social reform
• College/School: College of Social Sciences > School of Social and Political Sciences > Urban Studies
• Journal Name: Journal of Historical Geography
• Publisher: Elsevier
• ISSN: 0305-7488
• ISSN (Online): 1095-8614
• Published Online: 28 May 2012
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2012 Elsevier
• First Published: First published in Journal of Historical Geography 38(3):247-262
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher