Mapping

A key piece of information to be gathered about the members is where they lived. We recorded the addresses from all membership cards in the sample, converted them to coordinates, and plotted them on a Google Map. Moreover, we would like to compare the address map of Turgenev Library members with that of Shakespeare & Co. members. A dataset including information on approximately 5,700 members was exported from the Shakespeare and Company Project (SCP) website, and then sorted and cleaned to generate a total of 2,000 usable coordinate points for mapping. SCP has not yet systematically analyzed or mapped the location data besides some preliminary analysis of a small sample during an early stage of research, which we will reference and discuss. Due to the drastic difference in sample size, proportion is taken into account when comparing data from the two libraries.

Below is the resulting map with both the Turgenev Library layer and the Shakespeare & Co. layer; please feel free to zoom in and out to facilitate examining the spatial distribution at national, regional, and municipal levels, and to select/deselect one or both layers for comparisons. In the Turgenev layer, the location markers are color-coded in relation to chronology: addresses from undated cards are marked grey; for the dated cards, the earlier the year of active membership, the lighter the color of the address marker. For members actively across multiple years, an average is taken for statistical convenience. While it would have been more accurate to use an old map from the interwar period as a base map, Paris has not undergone significant change in urban planning over the past century, and most street names and landmarks remain relevant. Therefore, we opt for the modern map at this stage of the project for accessibility and convenience, but hope to transition to a more historically accurate map in the future.