About this site

This site is a personal collection of London Underground Tube maps that have helped passengers navigate the Underground since the 1920s. While the wider world of transport collectibles includes everything from station signs and posters to tickets and timetables, this collection is deliberately focused only on pocket-sized Tube maps.

The archive currently includes just over 90% of every known pocket Tube map version ever printed. My aim is to make the collection easy for me and other enthusiasts to browse, compare and study maps, while also demonstrating that building a near-complete set of maps is both achievable and highly rewarding.

Site navigation

The archive is built around three main features:

• Map Gallery. The main visual workspace of the site. It displays the map covers at a consistent browsing height, allowing you to scan the collection quickly. Open a map in the interactive viewer to see it at its approximate relative size.
• Interactive Viewer. The floating viewer lets you enlarge a map, fold and unfold it, turn it over, resize it and compare up to two maps at once. This is especially useful for comparing the relative size, format and design details of different editions.
• Map Listing and Profiles. The Map Listing provides a chronological reference table for the collection, with searchable and filterable data. Individual Map Profiles provide more detail about each edition, including dates, references, publishers, dimensions and notes. The listing data can also be downloaded for your own reference or collecting checklist.

Get in touch

Building an archive like this is an ongoing process, and the collector community is an important part of it. I would be very pleased to hear from fellow collectors, historians and enthusiasts who can help with any of the following by using the Contact form below:

• Map background and historical details: If you have information about a particular edition, design, print run, special issue or variation, your knowledge would be very welcome.
• Help Complete the Set: This collection is currently still missing a few elusive pocket maps. If you know where I might acquire these final pieces, or if you have copies you are looking to rehome, I would be delighted if you reached out to me.
• Report an Error: Accuracy is highly important for a reference archive. If you spot a mistake or a broken link, please let me know.

Contact form

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How it all started

My fascination with London Underground Tube maps started during my first business trip to London from Australia in 1998. I caught a train from Heathrow airport and when I stepped off at Piccadilly Circus, I recall being in awe of the incredible length and steep pitch of the station escalator. Then, at the top of the escalator, I turned a corner and there was a second escalator! This really brought home to me the staggering scale of the Underground network and just how far beneath the city I was.

Passing through the exit gates, I noticed a station employee swapping out old pocket maps in the wall dispenser with a freshly printed editon. I asked if I could take a copy of each version and he mentioned that these little maps had been guiding Underground passengers since the early 1900s.

That brief conversation sparked my interest in Tube maps and my research soon revealed that while the earlier network guides were large and cumbersome, the familiar foldable, pocket-sized versions we use today officially began their run in the 1920s.

On my next visit to London, I found myself exploring Cecil Court—a charming alleyway of antiquarian shops just off Charing Cross Road. In the windows of Bryars & Bryars and Storey’s, I spotted several vintage Underground Tube maps from the 1940s and 1950s. I immediately bought a couple of them and my collection began in earnest.

I still return to London two or three times every year. Over the decades, I have expanded my collection through online platforms like eBay, specialised collector fairs, and transport auctions, which you can read more about under the Collecting tab.

Where to find maps

Building a complete collection of Tube maps requires a mix of research, networking and a bit of luck. If you are just starting out, eBay.co.uk is an excellent entry point. You can easily find a wide range of standard editions for a reasonable price, and many sellers offer “starter packs” of 10, 20 or even 100 different maps. This is a fantastic, cost-effective way to quickly establish a collection from scratch.

However, as your collection matures, hunting down older, rarer, or misprinted editions requires looking into more specialised sources:

• Antiquarian Book and Map Dealers: London’s historic Cecil Court is a treasure trove for physical browsing. Shops like Bryars & Bryars and Storey’s specialise in vintage prints and often hold historic Underground pieces from the mid-20th century.
• Specialised Auctions: For other hard-to-find items, keep an eye on events hosted by organisations like Transport Auctions of London. These events are where collectors gather to buy and sell rare transport collectibles.
• Fairs and Flea Markets: Local antique fairs—such as the Chiswick Fair—and London flea markets are excellent places to rummage through old boxes. You can frequently discover hidden gems that vendors haven't catalogued online.

Storing your collection

Many collectors are content to keep their maps folded up in storage boxes. However, because it takes effort to take them out and unfold them, you may find that you rarely bother to take them out to look at them.

To truly enjoy your collection while keeping it preserved, consider using albums that use clear plastic sleeves designed for postcard or stamp "first day cover" collectors.

While many archival brands exist, I personally use high-quality albums and protective sleeves from Kobra in Germany where I live. These allow me to house two maps per page and offer two major advantages:

1. Maximum Protection: They guard the paper maps against dust, light wear, and humidity.
2. Dual-Side Viewing: You can view both the cover artwork and the map layout at the same time without physically touching or wearing down the paper folds.

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Disclaimer: Any third-party vendors, services, or websites mentioned on this page are provided purely as examples for reference and convenience. I do not officially endorse these suppliers, nor do I receive commercial incentives from them.

Reference books

For collectors looking to dive deeper into the design history and classification of London Underground pocket maps, the following publications are highly recommended:

1. Anne Letch, London Transport Maps & Guides. A Collectors' Reference Guide (Anne Letch, 2014). — The essential checklist for verifying pocket map print codes and editions.
2. Ken Garland, Mr Beck's Underground Map (Capital Transport Publishing, 2008; originally published 1994). — The definitive, classic history of Harry Beck's revolutionary grid design.
3. Maxwell J. Roberts, Underground Maps After Beck (Capital Transport Publishing, 2008; originally published 2005). — An incredible analysis of how later designers modified, expanded, and challenged Beck's geometry.
4. Maxwell J. Roberts, Tube Map Travels: Unofficial Diagrams and Underground Paperwork (Capital Transport Publishing, 2020). — A brilliant resource for tracking down rare, commercial, and unofficial map variants.
5. David Leboff & Tim Demuth, No Need To Ask: Early Maps of London's Underground Railways (Capital Transport Publishing, 1999). — The premier guide covering the intricate history of large foldable and early pocket maps pre-1930.
6. Claire Dobbin, London Underground Maps: Art, Design and Cartography (Lund Humphries, 2012). — A beautifully illustrated overview focusing on the graphic evolution and artistic merit of the maps.
7. Caroline Roope, The History of the London Underground Map (Pen & Sword Transport, 2022). — An engaging look at the cultural context and the visionaries behind London's iconic transit layout.
8. Mark Ovenden, London Underground by Design (Penguin Books, 2013). — A masterclass in the network's visual identity, featuring comprehensive sections on map graphics.

Related links and archives

The following external websites, digital archives, and collector communities are fantastic resources for further research:

20. London Transport Museum: Search Collection for "maps" — The official museum portal for browsing thousands of digitised historic maps and transport artefacts.
21. London Transport Museum: Tube Map Covers Exhibition — An exceptional, highly visual archive detailing the history of the art commissions, featuring digital displays of iconic covers since 2004.
22. London Underground Railway Society (LURS): London Underground Railway Society website — A long-established enthusiast society with meetings, publications and research material for people interested in the Underground and London transport history.
23. London Transport Museum Blog: A Brief History of the Pocket Underground Map by Nick Gill. — An excellent introductory overview detailing the physical evolution of passenger-carried leaflets.
24. TfL Corporate Archives: About the TfL Archives — Information on the central repository that preserves over 150,000 physical records and historic transit documentation dating back centuries.

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Disclaimer: Any third-party vendors, services, or websites mentioned on this page are provided purely as examples for reference and convenience. I do not officially endorse these suppliers, nor do I receive commercial incentives from them.