Historical orthophoto maps
Orthophoto maps display topographic and/or cadastral map details over an aerial photograph.
Our collection of scanned historical orthophoto maps of Queensland is available for free through Open Data and can be searched for and accessed via the Queensland Globe.
Orthophoto maps produced from 1971 onwards use a standard map numbering convention to define a map extent.
Note: Those still in copyright are made available via Creative Commons CC BY licence, which means that you can view, print etc. without any restrictions.
How to access historical orthophoto maps
Queensland Globe
Historical orthophoto maps can be accessed via the Queensland Globe by launching a Historical maps topic. It allows you to search for and access historical map scans for any Queensland location.
The following guide explains how to access historical map scans using the Queensland Globe.
Open Data Portal
Historical orthophoto maps can also be accessed via the Open Data portal. Links to individual series are included in the table below.
- Click on the resource series you want to view. A summary of the map series displays as well as options to view, including Download (CSV).
- The fields displayed (e.g. title) can be expanded to view the details.
- If the Download (CSV) option is selected, the url for the map scan is located in the Download link column (Column G).
- Copy this URL and paste it into your browser.
- Press enter and the map scan opens.
- You can then save the map to a location of your choosing or crop parts and paste into documents etc.
Resource series titles
| Map series | Key maps |
|---|---|
| 10000 9343 series 1977-1991-Esk | key map |
| 10000 9442 series 1975-Ipswich | key map |
| 10000 9443 series 1976-1977-Caboolture | key map |
| 500 series 1981—north Queensland | not available |
| 2500 series 1977-1996—Queensland | not available |
| 2500 series 1985—Fraser coast | not available |
| 5000 series 1980-1991—Queensland | not available |
| 10000 series 1977-1986—Queensland | not available |
| 25000 series 1986-1987—Darling Downs | not available |
| 25000 series 1978-1987—Queensland | not available |
Related links
- Read about researching historical maps and plans.
- Learn about Queensland parishes and historical land administration.
- Contact the Queensland State Archives for research information and to obtain copies of other historical maps and documents.
- Access historical aerial photographs of Queensland from the 1930s to 2009 on QImagery.