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History of Wilderness Mapping

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) published the first standardized map of the National Wilderness Preservation System (NWPS) in 1987. This 1:7,500,000 scale map showed wilderness areas in the contiguous United States on the front, with Alaska and Hawaii on the back. The back of this map also included general information on each congressionally designated wilderness area. Like the current 2004 map, the color of the wilderness showed which of the four federal agencies administered the area. In 1989, The Wilderness Society published a map commemorating the 25th Anniversary of the Wilderness Act. This map showed wildernesses, color-coded by agency, with Alaska and Hawaii inset below the contiguous United States at different scales. The reverse side listed acreage, year of proclamation, and administrative unit for each wilderness. To commemorate the 35th Anniversary of the Wilderness Act in 1999, The Wilderness Society, Trails Illustrated of National Geographic maps, the Aldo Leopold Wilderness Research Institute and Arthur Carhart National Wilderness Training Center collaborated to update The Wilderness Society map. This new map retained the appearance and size of the previous map, with Alaska and Hawaii inset, but included general information on wilderness within the map border.

The most current wilderness map, printed in 2004 for the 40th anniversary of the Wilderness Act, was published by the USGS National Atlas of the United States program through a truly collaborative and diverse partnership effort. Its large format (42" x 46") allows the map to be published at 1:5,000,000 scale, giving a clearer picture of the spatial extent and boundaries of each wilderness. Additionally, for the first time, Alaska and Hawaii are shown at the same scale as the contiguous United States. This is important since 54% of the NWPS is in Alaska. Also for the first time, the map is able to deliver educational message including an overview of the legacy and benefits of wilderness. One front inset displays photographs of selected wilderness areas and another quotes citizens on what wilderness means to them. The back of the map includes a table showing acreage, year of proclamation, and administrative unit for each wilderness. Adjacent to the table is a collage of images, text, and graphs that provide additional wilderness information.

Hard copies of the map can be purchased online from the Arthur Carhart National Wilderness Training Center's online store. The digital wilderness boundaries used to produce this map are available on the USGS National Atlas website. They can be downloaded as a separate layer through the Map Layers Data Warehouse in two digital formats with supporting metadata (http://www.nationalatlas.gov/mld/wildrnp.html). This layer provides wilderness boundary data for Geographic Information System (GIS) analysis and display.