old 1903 topo map bldg locations on modern maps

[maxxkatt]

I noticed with using historic aerials maps and overlays the present day location old buildings and roads are about 350 feet east of the modern topo maps.

why is there a difference and is there a way to locate an old home site on the 1903 topo map with the present day topo map or aerial photo?

 

[GKman]

Cartographers make mistakes. But I have seen better accuracy on maps that are 60 years older than that. If I was looking at it I would try to figure out if the entire map is off about 350 feet and if so you can make good judgments on where a place of interest may be considering that offset. If not I would probably look for any thing that may not have moved as much like a stream, or any other buildings in the area and make a good judgment call based on that.

If you haven't already I would probably double check what you are seeing on another site like this one I have shared here http://historicalmaps.arcgis.com/usgs/index.html