Maps Talk Back: Undergraduate Maps of Stanford

Undergraduate cartography draws from personal experience and rigorous academic exploration. Since 2013, students in Dr. Kären Wigen’s introductory seminar History 95: Maps in the Modern World have created original maps of Stanford. These maps are then compiled into a counter-atlas and preserved by Stanford Libraries.

This exhibit features a selection from nearly 80 student maps produced over more than a decade, showcasing the diverse technical, artistic, intellectual contributions of undergraduates to our campus. We are showing these maps with permission from their creators. Maps are both personal and political, realistic and idealistic, raw and polished. Find these student works, and other forms of counter-mapping, at Branner Earth Sciences Library & Map Collections, the Stanford Geospatial Center, and the David Rumsey Map Center.

This exhibit was organized by Zoe Dilles with help from Kristina Larsen, Pauline Lewis, Alma Parada, Karen Rodriguez, Kristen Valenti-McKeen, and Kären Wigen.

Sara Boyers (Class of 2026)

Main quad buildering: classic climbs and new lines
An atlas of Stanford counter-maps (Fall & Spring 2022)

G1526.P2:2S7 2022 .W5

Reproduction of paper map

Boyers explores buildering –“the practice of climbing urban features”– around Stanford’s Main Quad. Many of the routes and names were passed down through Stanford students and alums.

Lilith Frakes (Class of 2021)

Stanford University places I've cried
An atlas of Stanford counter-maps (Spring 2018)

G1526.P2:2S7 2018 .W5

Reproduction of paper map

Frakes would like to acknowledge the artistic contributions of Lily Nilipour (Class of 2022) to this work. The underlying data was sourced from a closed Facebook Group open to Stanford students.

"The Stanford Libraries and University Archives were a tremendous resource when working on the project." 
- Andrew Lokay (Class of 2020)

Andrew Lokay (Class of 2020)

The wind of freedom of speech blows: a map of Stanford activism
An atlas of Stanford counter maps (Fall 2016)

G1526 .P2:2S7 2016 .W5

Reproduction of paper map

Lokay noted that, due to space constraints, this map included only a representative sample of past and contemorary campus protests. Lokay added that a map of activism should be a living document.

Henry Segal (Class of 2026)

The museum farm
A Stanford counter atlas (2023)

G1526 .P2:2S7 2023 .W5

Facsimile of paper map

Segal’s work explored the practice of public history through the use of plaques around campus calling the map, “a call to action...to further examine your community.

Mahie Wilhelm (Coterm 2024)

Mapping native life on Muwekma-Ohlone land
An atlas of Stanford counter maps (Fall 2019)

G1526.P2:2S7 2018 .W54

Raphael Griolet (Class of 2028)

Freshers’ flu, a descent into chaos
An atlas of Stanford counter maps (Fall 2024)

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Lydia Wei (Class of 2024)

Stanford: campus of the unknown
The quarantine atlas : mapping global life under COVID-19

RA644 .C67 B595 2022

Reproduction of paper map

Wei’s map was originally produced for the class final project that became the An atlas of Stanford counter-maps (Fall & Spring 2022). It was also one of over 400 homemade maps documenting life during the coronavirus pandemic that comprise the 2022 Quarantine Atlas compiled by Bloomberg CityLab journalists Laura Bliss and Jessica Martin.

Jacob Sujin Kuppermann (Coterm 2021)

"A serious campus conversation": alcohol transport at Stanford mapped, approximately
An atlas of Stanford counter maps (Fall 2016)

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Reproduction of paper map

Kupperman mapped occurrences of alcohol transports onto a Stanford campus basemap using red: “the color of wine and emergency medical symbols.” The underlying data was collected from the Department of Public Safety and the Office of Alcohol Policy & Education.

Ellie Utter (Class of 2020)

Focus on the farm
An atlas of Stanford counter maps (Fall 2016)

G1526 .P2:2S7 2016 .W5

"Kären was a great professor and I'm glad to hear our projects from that class live on!"
- Trevor Howarth (Class of 2017)

Trevor Howarth (Class of 2017)

Money grows on trees: Stanford's expenditures for the 2013-2014 year
An atlas of Stanford counter maps (2013)

G1526 .P2:2S7 2013 .W5

Jeremy Rubin (Class of 2019)

The prevalence of nonconsensual sexual contact on campus
An atlas of Stanford counter-maps (Fall 2019)

G1526.P2:2S7 2019 .W5

Reproduction of paper map

Rubin noted that,“nearly half of all nonconsensual sexual contact occurs in residence halls and dorms” according to pdata published in the 2019 Campus Climate Survey on Sexual Assault and Misconduct conducted by the Association of American Universities and cites data shared in a letter from the Provost.

Sarah Reyes (Class of 2025)

Stanford's Empire: Mapping the Bay Area's Landlord
An atlas of Stanford counter-maps (Fall & Spring 2022)

G1526.P2:2S7 2022 .W5

Reproduction of paper map

Reyes combined county assessors’ parcel data from San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties to create these maps of Stanford University’s holdings across the map area.

"Professor Wigen's class has been among my favorite experiences at Stanford."
- Atash Heil (Class of 2025)

Atash Heil (Class of 2025)

Hoover Institution - Stanford's strange bedmate
An atlas of Stanford counter-maps (Fall & Spring 2022)

G1526.P2:2S7 2022 .W5

Ethan Ball (Class of 2027)

"Disabled students don't exist on the weekends"
A Stanford counter atlas (Fall 2023)

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Kyle Yu (Class of 2022)

How long does a Stanford custodian need to work to make rent?
An atlas of Stanford counter maps (Fall 2018)

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Reproduction of paper map

Yu sourced average one-bedroom apartment rates on RentJungle and RentCafe and a wage estimate from Glassdoor at $22 per hour for custodial work.

"It was a superb class and a great assignment (one of my first real projects at Stanford) so I'm happy to see it's being stored and preserved!" 
- Sam Waddoups (Class of 2023) 

Sam Waddoups (Class of 2023)

The way-losing map of Stanford
An atlas of Stanford counter-maps (Fall 2019)

G1526.P2:2S7 2019 .W5

Reproduction of paper map

Waddoups combined Google Maps’ location history with personal recollections to create this map. Wavy lines indicate being lost and exclamation points mark moments of realization. A customized basemap of campus reflects Waddoups’ familiarity with specific buildings and streets.

Dione Sheehan (Class of 2021)

Morning glimpses
An atlas of Stanford counter-maps (Spring 2018)

G1526.P2:2S7 2018 .W5

Brian Kuglen (Coterm 2024)

Waterworks : how water works at Stanford
An atlas of Stanford counter-maps (Fall 2019)

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Matthew Early (Coterm 2023)

The dark side of biking
An atlas of Stanford counter maps (Fall 2018)

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Reproduction of paper map

Early used officially reported data from the Department of Public Safety, noting that far more minor accidents happen every day and go unreported.

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