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Aerial Photographs of Buffalo and WNY: Contents

Last Updated: Jan 23, 2024 8:56 AM

Collection Description

The University at Buffalo Map Collection has more than 6,000 aerial photographs covering portions of:

  • Erie County for the years 1927-1929, 1966, and 1978;
  • Cattaraugus County for the years 1929, 1966 and 1978; and
  • Niagara County for 1966 and 1978. 

Please check this guide for the region you need, as we have scanned many popular areas for each series. 

Contents

The aerial photographs are from the following series:

  • 8187 (1927)
  • 8226 (1928)
  • 8275 (1928)
  • 8326 (1929)
  • ARE-ARF (1966)
  • 36029-176 (1978)

Viewing the Scanned Aerials in this Guide

Individual images are listed by number. Some index maps are included here (click on the series number at top of each section to view the index).

The best way to check if aerial photos for your area of interest have been posted on this guide is to use your browser's SEARCH command (CTRL+F or Command+F) and enter the most specific word for the location you wish to see (e.g., forest lawn).

Researchers are invited to view the originals of any posted images by appointment. 

Note: All aerial images are scanned from photo proofs of the original negatives. Quality is lower than from originals. If you have better copies of these photographs, or if you have other photographs that you would be willing to share, please contact us and consider allowing us to scan these to upgrade our materials. Thank you.

Other Aerial Photographs & Satellite Imagery at UB

Additional aerial photographs and maps of the UB campuses (North and South) are available on the UB in Maps page. 

Aerial Photographs of Western New York for Buffalo (City); 175 plates (including some of the below images) cover the entire city. This is a subset of the 8226 series.

In addition to the online collections, the Map Collection contains a small collection of miscellaneous satellite imagery of United States cities. Many of these images are found in the Libraries Catalog.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) National Wetlands Inventory Historic Aerial Imagery

About Wetlands and The National Wetlands Inventory

 

Wetlands provide a multitude of ecological, economic and social benefits. They provide habitat for fish, wildlife and plants - many of which have a commercial or recreational value - recharge groundwater, reduce flooding, provide clean drinking water, offer food and fiber, and support cultural and recreational activities. Unfortunately, over half of America’s wetlands have been lost since 1780, and wetland losses continue today. This highlights the urgent need for geospatial information on wetland extent, type, and change. (Source: U/S/ Environmental Protection Agency, https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2016-02/documents/wetlandfunctionsvalues.pdf)

UB Libraries Collection of National Wetlands Inventory Historic Aerial Imagery

UB Libraries recently acquired thousands of aerial images from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) National Wetlands Inventory Historic Aerial Imagery. At this time, the Libraries does not have viewing equipment for the transparencies in the collection. UB researchers may contact the map librarian directly for details about the collection and arrange a loan of transparencies to use with personal slide viewers or scopes. 

 

Date and geographic range information for this collection is detailed in the below table.

USGS Quad ID

Quad Name

State

25k USGS Quad ID

Quad Name

Box Name

Scale

Year

Source

43076-E1

Pulaski

NY

43076-A1

Rochester

Rochester NE

40000

1995

NAPP

43079-A1

Niagara Falls

NY

43078-A1

Toronto

Toronto NW

40000

1995

NAPP

43079-A1

Lockport

NY

43078-A1

Toronto

Toronto NE

40000

1995

NAPP

43077-A1

Rochester

NY

43076-A1

Rochester

Rochester SW

40000

1995

NAPP

43076-A1

Syracuse

NY

43076-A1

Rochester

Rochester SE

40000

1995

NAPP

42079-E1

Silver Creek

NY
PA

42078-A1

Buffalo

Buffalo NW

40000

1995

NAPP

42078-E1

Buffalo

NY

42078-A1

Buffalo

Buffalo NE

40000

1995

NAPP

42079-A1

Jamestown

NY
PA

42078-A1

Buffalo

Buffalo SW

80000

1981

VEQX

42078-A1

Olean

NY
PA

42078-A1

Buffalo

Buffalo
SE

58000

1985

HAP85

 

Librarian

Profile Photo
Sam Kim
he/him
Contact:
118 Lockwood Library, North Campus
(716) 645-7785

Highlighted Images

Note

Further Information and Donations Request

If you need further assistance, please contact the Map Librarian or call the Lockwood Library Reference Desk (716-645-2820).

If you have aerial photographs or maps that you wish to donate to the UB Map Collection, or would be willing to loan to the Collection for creating copies, please contact us. Thank you.