A 1657 map from the Rucker Agee Collection shows Floride Francois (Georgia and South Carolina), and Floride Espanole (the Southeast).

Defining one’s place in the historical world has always been a natural preoccupation of the curious, particularly cartographers and explorers. During November and December, the Rucker Agee Collection of the Birmingham Public Library will offer the public a glimpse at such perceptions of the South’s geographical location in history with “Maps-1540 to Today, From the Collection of Rucker Agee.” Comprised of 60 Eastern hemisphere maps dating back to the 1500s, the exhibit chronicles the development of Birmingham and the Southeastern region. Included in the exhibit are an original woodblock map from 1540 detailing the Spanish discovery of America, and a 16th-century Swiss map featuring renderings of Caribbean islands where seafaring trade ships docked.

The Rucker Agee Collection has been at the library since 1955, and an endowment keeps the collection of almost 4,000 maps updated with the most current charts available. “It’s fascinating to watch how various peoples used the land-the French, the Spanish. Everybody sticks to the coast and then they move in on the inland rivers,” says Marjorie White, director of the Birmingham Historical Society.

“Holster maps,” carried by British troops during the Revolutionary War, will be on display along with land surveys that included the east and west coasts of Florida, possibly used to identify landing sites for British vessels. An 1818 chart of Alabama is featured as the first map of the state. (Alabama officially achieved statehood in 1819.) Included are lands for sale by the state as well as territory inhabited by Indian tribes. There is also an 1849 geological map by Irish geologist Michael Tuomey that was used in the mining of Alabama’s mineral resources, especially coal and iron. Ages and types of strata are included with river systems and towns. The future location of Birmingham appears on a bed of limestone between two huge coal deposits.

The exhibit runs from November 1 to December 31. A reception will be held Sunday, November 3, from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Call 226-3600 for details.