A gigantic map of all the cool plaques in the world. A project of 99% Invisible.
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The most recent plaques:

WILLIAM HENRY WEBB

    An Era of Dramatic Change

    Historically Alameda was a peninsula, rich in natural resources. Native peoples gathered food and materials from bay salt marshes, abundant oak forests, and nearby shorelines. From the early...

    Historically Alameda was a peninsula, rich in natural resources. Native peoples gathered food and materials from bay salt marshes, abundant oak forests, and nearby shorelines. From the...

    • transcontine...
    • san francisc...
    • east bay reg...

    The View from Here

    Looking across the Bay you can see the expanse of estuarine water and distant hills of South San Francisco and San Mateo. There, Spanish explorers first viewed San Francisco Bay less than 250...

    Looking across the Bay you can see the expanse of estuarine water and distant hills of South San Francisco and San Mateo. There, Spanish explorers first viewed San Francisco Bay less than 250...

    • east bay reg...
    • alameda point

    Wildlife at Alameda Point

    The waters of San Francisco Bay surrounding the island of Alameda support a rich diversity of life. The rocky shoreline of Alameda Point provides a surface where many different kinds of plants and...

    The waters of San Francisco Bay surrounding the island of Alameda support a rich diversity of life. The rocky shoreline of Alameda Point provides a surface where many different kinds of plants and...

    • east bay reg...
    • alameda point

    Alaska Packers Association

    The Bay Area once lead the world in the export of salmon. In nineteenth-century San Francisco, more than a dozen companies were involved in packing and distributing salmon harvested from Alaskan...

    The Bay Area once lead the world in the export of salmon. In nineteenth-century San Francisco, more than a dozen companies were involved in packing and distributing salmon harvested from...

    • fishing
    • sailing
    • maritime industry
    • port

    Where the World Comes to Oakland

    The opening of the Panama Canal in 1914 made way for new trade routes that led to a shipping boom in the post-war world of the 1920s. By 1925, Oakland was ready to capitalize on growing...

    The opening of the Panama Canal in 1914 made way for new trade routes that led to a shipping boom in the post-war world of the 1920s. By 1925, Oakland was ready to capitalize on...

    • shipping
    • harbor
    • port
    • maritime industry

    Houseboats on the Waterfront

    Preparations for World War II ended plans of filling the Southwest yacht basins with pleasure crafts. Instead, a severe housing shortage during the war turned the waterfront into a home for...

    Preparations for World War II ended plans of filling the Southwest yacht basins with pleasure crafts. Instead, a severe housing shortage during the war turned the waterfront into a home...

    • washington dc
    • wharf

    Urban Renewal

    At the beginning of the 20th century, Southwest was considered a decaying neighborhood suffering from poor housing and urban blight. In 1945, the Redevelopment Land Agency was created and its...

    At the beginning of the 20th century, Southwest was considered a decaying neighborhood suffering from poor housing and urban blight. In 1945, the Redevelopment Land Agency was created and...

    • washington dc
    • wharf

    African-American History in Southwest

    The Southwest Waterfront's history is closely tied to African-American history. Leading up to the Civil War, many people of color - those still enslaved as well as some freed individuals - lived...

    The Southwest Waterfront's history is closely tied to African-American history. Leading up to the Civil War, many people of color - those still enslaved as well as some freed individuals -...

    • washington dc
    • wharf

    Maliebaan

    This plaque tells the history of this long straight lane in Utrecht. It was created in 1637, as a 700 meters long track for the "maliespel" game, which is like a forerunner of golf and croquet....

    This plaque tells the history of this long straight lane in Utrecht. It was created in 1637, as a 700 meters long track for the "maliespel" game, which is like a forerunner of golf and croquet....

    • maliebaan
    • historic street

    Maliebaan bicycle lane

    The long and straight lane "maliebaan" was created as sports track in 1637 (see the plaque at the other end of the street). After the game died out it became a regular street in the growing city...

    The long and straight lane "maliebaan" was created as sports track in 1637 (see the plaque at the other end of the street). After the game died out it became a regular street in the growing city...

    • maliebaan
    • historic street
    • bicycle lane

    Valentine Residence

    “Kid” Thomas Valentine (1897-1987), trumpeter and bandleader, lived here at 825 Vallette Street in 1928. Born in Reserve, LA he moved to Algiers in 1923. He played at Speck’s Moulin Rouge in...

    “Kid” Thomas Valentine (1897-1987), trumpeter and bandleader, lived here at 825 Vallette Street in 1928. Born in Reserve, LA he moved to Algiers in 1923. He played at Speck’s Moulin Rouge in...

    • louisiana
    • music
    • jazz
    • new orleans

    Allen Residence

    Henry Allen (1871-1952) trumpet player and bandleader, and Henry "Red” Allen, Jr., (1906-1967), trumpet player, singer and bandleader, lived here at 414 Newton Street from 1906 until 1917. Henry...

    Henry Allen (1871-1952) trumpet player and bandleader, and Henry "Red” Allen, Jr., (1906-1967), trumpet player, singer and bandleader, lived here at 414 Newton Street from 1906 until 1917. Henry...

    • louisiana
    • music
    • jazz
    • new orleans

    Marcour Residence

    Oscar J. Marcour (1895-1956), violinist and bandleader, lived here at 431 Opelousas Ave from 1917 to 1919. He played with the Jules Bauduc Orchestra at the Silver Slipper, made and Edison...

    Oscar J. Marcour (1895-1956), violinist and bandleader, lived here at 431 Opelousas Ave from 1917 to 1919. He played with the Jules Bauduc Orchestra at the Silver Slipper, made and...

    • louisiana
    • music
    • jazz
    • new orleans

    The Right Bank of the Mississippi River

    Once connected by a mule-drawn streetcar, Algiers and Gretna are now linked by this path of history. Follow the markers along the "Right Bank of the Mississippi River" to historic downtown Gretna,...

    Once connected by a mule-drawn streetcar, Algiers and Gretna are now linked by this path of history. Follow the markers along the "Right Bank of the Mississippi River" to historic downtown Gretna,...

    • louisiana
    • new orleans
    • mississippi river

    Louis Armstrong

    During his early years in New Orleans Louis Armstrong drew upon the entire spectrum of music associated with the city. He spent time following Joe Oliver in the "second lines” which accompanied...

    During his early years in New Orleans Louis Armstrong drew upon the entire spectrum of music associated with the city. He spent time following Joe Oliver in the "second lines” which...

    • louisiana
    • new orleans
    • jazz
    • music

    Stone Canyon Scenic Overlook

    On Mulholland Drive, at the crest of the Beverly Crest neighborhood (in what I, a non-Angeleno, would be tempted to call the Hollywood HIlls). To the south, the city spreads out nearly as far as...

    On Mulholland Drive, at the crest of the Beverly Crest neighborhood (in what I, a non-Angeleno, would be tempted to call the Hollywood HIlls). To the south, the city spreads out nearly as far...

    • los angeles
    • san fernando valley
    • santa monica...
    • stone canyon

    The Goldthwaite Eagle

    The Goldthwaite Eagle In 1885, William H. Thompson (1842-1896) started a weekly newspapers, “The Mountaineer,” which closed but was re-established in 1894. He sold it in 1896 to R.M. Thompson, his...

    The Goldthwaite Eagle In 1885, William H. Thompson (1842-1896) started a weekly newspapers, “The Mountaineer,” which closed but was re-established in 1894. He sold it in 1896 to R.M. Thompson,...

    • texas
    • goldthwaite
    • mills county
    • newspapers

    Mills County Jail

    Mills County Jail, 1888. First structure built by newly organized county, before county seat was chosen. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark — 1965.Struck by the fact that before the county did...

    Mills County Jail, 1888. First structure built by newly organized county, before county seat was chosen. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark — 1965.Struck by the fact that before the county...

    • texas
    • mills county
    • goldthwaite
    • jails
    • law and order

    Frank Teich

    Frank Teich (Sept. 23, 1856-Jan. 27, 1939)   A native of Germany, Frank Teich studied under master German artists and sculptors before coming to the United States in 1878. By 1883 he was...

    Frank Teich (Sept. 23, 1856-Jan. 27, 1939)   A native of Germany, Frank Teich studied under master German artists and sculptors before coming to the United States in 1878. By 1883 he...

    • texas
    • llano county
    • llano
    • county courthouses
    • courthouses
    • frank teich
    • architecture