Flow Mapping through the Times

One of the most commonly used types of maps today are flow maps, which simultaneously depict movement in time, place, and volume on a geographical map, as seen in GPS navigation devices. This type of map-making was invented independently during the 1830-1840s by three railway engineers from the United Kingdom, Belgium, and France. However, as this chapter argues, the growing popularity of the genre had little to do with the intent of the three pioneers. By looking at the context, in which flow maps appeared, rather than the technique used to design them, the chapter shows the importance of culture, politics, and ideology in understanding the changing meanings of flow maps during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.