Data Sources for Environmental Studies
of the Hamilton-Wentworth Region

The following materials are available in the Lloyd Reeds Map Collection, Mills Memorial Library.
All material is available for consultation or on very short-term loan, for class presentations.

TOPOGRAPHIC MAPS | SOILS | HYDROGRAPHIC FEATURES | GEOLOGY | VEGETATION | LAND USE | AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY

TOPOGRAPHIC MAPS

National Topographic Series 1:50,000 (Canada Ministry of Energy, Mines and Resources)

• Coloured maps showing details of physical relief, wooded areas, surface hydrology. Contour interval 10 metres. Local area is covered by 4 sheets. Current edition 1996, plus all older editions available to show change over time.
• Map Collection location: Map Cabinets 1C - 9J

Ontario Base Maps 1:10,000 (Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources)

• Black and white maps showing details of physical relief, surface hydrology, wooded areas. Contour interval 5 metres. Local area is covered by about 75 maps. 1983-84. Some sheets are also available as ArcView coverag es in digital format. Map Collection location:
• Map Cabinet 14B

Redhill Valley Base Maps 1:1,000 (Regional Municipality of Hamilton-Wentworth, Roads Dept.)

• Black and white maps showing details of physical relief. Contour interval 0.5 metres. Cover north/south valley of Redhill Creek from the Q.E.W. to Mud Street. 1986.
• Map Collection location: Map Cabinet 36G

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SOILS

• General description of local geology, physiography, drainage and climate. Detailed description of soil classes. Map and text. Map scale 1:63,360.
• Map Collection location: Bookshelf 44-1 (office)

Soil Landscapes of Canada: Ontario-South (Agriculture Canada, Land Resource Research Centre, Canada Soil Inventory, 1988)

• Generalized inventory of dominant and subdominant soil characteristics. Map, tables and illustrated poster. Map scale 1:1,000,000. Also available in digital format.
• Map Collection location: Top of Map Cabinet 19

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HYDROGRAPHIC FEATURES

• Detailed map of water depths and navigation features. Map scale 1:12,000. Current edition 1995, plus older editions available to show shoreline change over time.
• Map Collection location: Map Cabinet 32G

Hamilton Region Conservation Authority (Hamilton Region Conservation Authority, 1988)

• Map delimits local area watershed. Map scale 1:63,360
• Map Collection location: Map Cabinet 36A

Hamilton Region Conservation Authority: Flood Line Maps (Dillon Consulting Engineers & Planners, for H.R.C.A., 1977)

• Detailed maps showing flood and fill lines for Borer's, Logie's, Sydenham and parts of Spencer Creeks. Map scale 1:2,440, contour interval 5 feet. Similar maps are available for Twenty Mile Creek and Welland River in Glanbrook Township (part of Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority watershed).M.
• Map Collection location: Map Cabinet 41E

Major Aquifers in Ontario (Ontario Ministry of Environment, Water Resources Branch, 1978)

• Maps show well locations and depth to water, and contours of water-level elevation. Two maps cover the local area. Map scale 1:100,000.
• Map Collection location: Map Cabinet 41E

Water Well Records for Ontario: Brant, Hamilton-Wentworth 1946-1979 (Ontario Ministry of the Environment, Water Resources Bulletin 2-29, 1982)

• Report details location, water type, depth and flow rate of wells in the local area. Includes information on the soils and thicknesses penetrated.
• Call number: CA2 ONNR24 76B02029
• Map Collection location: Bookshelf 3-4

Spencer Creek Conservation Reports (Ontario Dept. of Lands and Forest, 1959-62)

• 5 reports, including maps describing the Spencer Creek watershed. History, water, land and forest in separate volumes.
• Call numbers: CA2 ONER59 60S61, CA2 ONER59 59S62, CA2 ONER59 59S601, CA2 ONER59 59S602, CA2 ONER59 59S603
• Map Collection location: Bookshelf 43-1 (office)

Spencer Creek Watershed Hydrology Study (MacLaren Plansearch, for Hamilton Region Conservation Authority, 1990)

• 2 volumes including maps describing the physiography of the watershed, soils, land use and modelling of flood flows.
• Call number: CA2 ONER59 90S611
• Map Collection location: Bookshelf 43-1 (office)

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GEOLOGY

• Bedrock geology of the local area. Map scale 1:50,000.
• Map Collection location: Bookshelf 44-1 (office)

Palaeozoic Geology of the Toronto-Hamilton Area, Ontario (J.F. Caley, Canada Dept. of Mines and Resources, Geological Survey Memoir 224, 1940)

• Text and maps.
• Map Collection location: Bookshelf 44-1 (office)

Petroleum Resources Map Series (Ontario Ministry of Northern Development and Mines, Ontario Geological Survey, Preliminary maps P2872, P2891, P2914, P2928, P2942, P3009, 1986-88)

• Silurian sandstone oil and gas pools. Bedrock structure to the top of the Rochester formation. Isopach maps of various sandstone formations. Map scales 1:100,000.
• Map Collection location: Map Cabinets 17F and 17G

Surficial Geology maps (Ontario Ministry of Northern Development and Mines, Ontario Geological Survey)

• 12 maps, mostly preliminary, cover local area incompletely. Including quaternary geology, bedrock topography, drift thickness. Map scales 1:50,000.
• Map Collection location: Map Cabinet 20A (Index )

Quaternary Geology of Hamilton-Cambridge Area, Southern Ontario (Ontario Ministry of Northern Development and Mines, Ontario Geological Survey Report 255, 1987)

• Text and maps.
• Map Collection location: Bookshelf 44-1 (office)

Pleistocene Geology of Hamilton-Galt Area (P.F. Karrow, Ontario Dept. of Mines, Geological Report No. 16, 1963)

• Text and maps.
• Map Collection location: Bookshelf 44-1 (office)

Aggregate Resources Inventory of the Regional Municipality of Hamilton-Wentworth, Southern Ontario (Ontario Geological Survey, Aggregate Resources Inventory Paper 50, 1984)

• Inventory of sand and gravel resources, including glacial drift, esker deposits and bedrock resources. Maps and text. Map scale 1:50,000.
• Call number: CA2 ONNR404 81P50
• Map Collection location: Bookshelf 44-1 (office)

Guide to the Geology of the Niagara Escarpment, with Field Trips (Walter M. Tovell, Niagara Escarpment Commission, 1992)

• Text and maps. Describes physiography, bedrock, origins, glaciation, ancestral Great Lakes and changing environment. Includes a local field trip from the Dundas Valley to the Georgetown outlier.
• Call number: QE 191 .T68 1992
• Map Collection location: Bookshelf 44-1 (office)

Lake Iroquois (A.P. Coleman, Ontario Dept. of Mines 45th Annual Report, v. XLV Part VII, 1936, pp. 1-36)

• Article and map describing the Iroquois Beach and glacial history of the local area. Map scale 1:316,800.
• Map Collection location: Bookshelf 44-1 (office)

An Earth Science Inventory and Evaluation of the Dundas Valley Area of Natural and Scientific Interest (P.S.G. Kor, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, Central Region, 1991)

• Text and map. Dundas Valley has been identified as an ANSI because of its unique post-glacial features, particularly kame and kettle topography. Report describes geology and geomorphology of the area, and planning considerations.
• Call number: CA2 ONNR238 91R05
• Map Collection location: Bookshelf 44-1 (office)

An Earth Science Inventory and Evaluation of the Spencer Gorge Area of Natural and Scientific Interest (P.S.G. Kor, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, Central Region, 1991)

• Text and map. Spencer Gorge has been identified as an ANSI because of its excellent representation of bedrock geology and valley geomorphology of the Niagara Escarpment. Report describes geology of the area, and planning considerations.
• Call number: CA2 ONNR238 91R07
• Map Collection location: Bookshelf 44-1 (office)

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VEGETATION

• Details of tree species, age and height, superimposed on air photos. Scale 1:10,000. Local area is covered on 9 maps.
• Map Collection location: Map Cabinet 14H

Wetland Mapping Series (Federation of Ontario Naturalists, 1985)

• Details of wetlands gained and lost 1967-1982, superimposed on copies of 1:50,000 topographic maps. Local area is covered on 4 maps.
• Map Collection location: Map Cabinet 14H

Towards a Regional Greenlands System: Discussion Paper (Regional Municipality of Hamilton-Wentworth, Planning and Development Dept., October 1994)

• Report including maps proposing an interconnected greenland of protected natural areas.
• Call number: CA3 ONZP778 94T56
• Map Collection location: Bookshelf 43-1

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LAND USE

• Details of field crop systems and non-agricultural land uses imposed on copies of 1:50,000 topographic maps, by township. Local area is covered on 6 maps.
• Map Collection location: Map Cabinet 41C

Artificial Drainage System Map Series (Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food, 1983)

• Details of tile drainage and pipelines, by township. Map scale 1:25,000. Local area is covered on 5 sheets.
• Map Collection location: Map Cabinet 41C

Regional Development Planning Map Series (Hamilton-Wentworth Region, Planning and Development Dept., 1987-1990)

• Small maps showing locations of specific land uses: forests and woodlots, septic disposal suitability, mineral resources, environmentally sensitive areas, transportation, agricultural lands, Niagara Escarpment Plan areas. Map scales 1:208,300 approx.
• Map Collection location: Small Maps File (office)

Canada Land Inventory Map Series (Canada Dept. of Regional Economic Expansion, 1968-1971)

• Set of 5 maps showing land capability for forestry, recreation, ungulate wildlife and waterfowl and soil capability for agriculture. Map scale 1:250,000.
• Map Collection location: Bookshelf 44-1 (office)

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AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY

• Air photos at various scales, from federal, provincial and regional governments. Older photos are valuable in identifying changes in vegetation, drainage, land use over time. 1919 - 1998. Detailed indexes are available to identify areas covered in each year. A list of air photos for Hamilton-Wentworth Region is available.
• Map Collection location: Map Cabinets 75 and 76

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Contact: mapref@mcmaster.ca
Last Reviewed: December 1, 2005
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