Ordnance Survey Ireland (OSI) is marking its 185 anniversary with the opening of a new visitors' centre and a number of open days to allow people learn about the history of science of map making.
President Mary McAleese will officially open the national mapping service's centre on September 1st, and the facility will be open to the public from September 2nd-4th and 6th.
Guided tours will take place in the Phoenix Park centre on the half-hour, with the last tour at 3.30pm. There will be demonstrations of survey methods through history and exhibitions of the paper and digital products and services provided by the OSI.
On the Sunday, there will be three tours at 2pm, 2.30pm, and 3.30pm.
According to a spokesman, visits to the centre outside the open days must be made by group appointment.
The service is also planning a national schools competition and a vintage car rally on September 6th as part of its celebrations.
The schools' competition, to be run early next month, aims to encourage understanding of the use of geographical information in the local environment and will coincide with the unveiling of OSI’s updated educational section of its corporate website www.osi.ie.
The rally will start in Castlebellingham, Co Louth, on the Sunday morning and will end at the OSI offices in the Phoenix Park at approximately 2.30pm. The cars will be on view for the afternoon, and all monies raised during the event will be donated to charity.
Geraldine Ruane, chief executive, said: “In the course of this long and distinguished history OSI has been to the forefront in pioneering new technologically advanced ways of mapping the national landscape. Today OSI is recognised as an international leader in geographic information and a benchmark for excellence in its field of expertise.
Inviting the public to join celebrations, she said; “Our work has brought us to every corner of the land and we - staff members past and present - have been happy to serve the people of Ireland and I believe that the work OSI has done down through the years has made its own contribution to the growth and development of the State and society in general."
Ordnance Survey Ireland started life as the Ordnance Survey Office in 1824, and all staff employed were from the military until the 1970s when the first civilian employees were recruited.
The Ordnance Survey Office was created to carry out a survey of the island of Ireland to update land valuations for land taxation purposes. The original survey at a scale of six inches to one mile was completed in 1846, and Ireland therefore became the first country in the world to be entirely mapped at such a detailed scale.