Video of the Week: Before There Was Google Street View There Was This

Making road maps might seem like a mundane or even obsolete task today, but this 1940 video portrays it as a heroic endeavor. The gung-ho narrator describes how draftsmen continuously updated maps based on reports from “road scouts” who drove the country’s fast-expanding road network and sent back details on route changes: “It’s swell teamwork on the part of everyone that gets speedy, accurate information on modern road maps!”

The video, from the Prelinger Archive, was made by the Detroit-based Jam Handy Organization, which produced educational and promotional videos for the American automobile industry from the 1930s through the 60s.

The full video begins with a brief history of cartography.