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International Map Collector's Society
20th International Symposium
Chicago and Milwaukee, USA
October 11th - 16th 2001

Chicago's Newberry Library and the American Geographic Society Collection at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee are hosting the 20th International Symposium of IMCoS in Chicago and Milwaukee.  The Newberry and the AGS, with the Chicago Map Society and the Wisconsin Map Society, are planning five days of lectures and social activities, tours, and three major exhibits showcasing the cartographic treasures of the two libraries and Chicago's Adler Planetarium.

Symposium Programme

The symposium will begin at the Newberry Library with the 14th Kenneth Nebenzahl, Jr., Lectures in the History of Cartography.  Entitled A Taste for Maps, the lectures will re-examine the history of the map trade from the point of view of the map consumer.  The Nebenzahl Lectures will be punctuated by several receptions and opportunities to view a major exhibit of the Newberry's cartographic treasures.  The principal speaker for this event will be Dr Mary Pedley (William M. Clements Library, University of Michigan) who will present three lectures on Thursday and Friday.  The Nebelzahl Lectures will conclude on Saturday morning with a panel of shorter papers presented by David Woodward, Markus Heinz, and Peter van der Krogt examining map consumption in Italy, the Netherlands, and Germany in the 16th - 18th centuries.

The IMCoS Symposium will begin formally after lunch on Saturday with a gallery walk through an exhibit showcasing the Newberry's cartographic treasures dating from the 15th-20th centuries.  Participants wishing to get their bearings and to learn more about Chicago's modern architecture will then have the option of joining one of three tours arranged with the Chicago Architecture Foundation.  Additional optional tours of the greater Chicago area are available on Sunday.  The Chicago-based events will be capped by a visit on Sunday evening to the spectacular lakefront site of the Adler Planetarium, which is planning an exhibition of its impressive holdings of celestial cartography.

On Monday the venue will shift 150 kilometers north to the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, which houses the huge research and cartographic collections of the Americal Geographical Society.  The day in Milwaukee will begin with a reception and viewing of an exhibit of AGS treasures.  A luncheon sponsored by the UWM Libraries will precede a series of talks on map collections and map collecting by Chris Baruth of the AGS, Bob Karrow of the Newberry Library, David Woodward of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and distingushed map dealer Ken Nebenzahl.  After this Symposium participants will enjoy a brief bus tour of Milwaukee.  The day will end with a banquet featuring an address by John Hebert, Chief of the Geography and Map Division of the Library of Congress.

A post-conference tour on Tuesday 16th October will visit the University of Wisconsin-Madison, headquarters of the History of Cartography project, and highlights of the history, culture and beautiful landscape of Southwestern Wisconsin, inspiration and home to Frank Lloyd Wright and one of the best kept secrets in North America.