Stonehouse - Group Map

Below is the group map produced to map out different elements of the Stonehouse area.  The frist map shows the original Stonehouse road map, while the second shows the annotations without this input.  By removing the stereotypical map image it enables the annotations to become a map in themselves demonstrating a completely new representation of the area.

This map represents the following things:

The orange circles are green spaces, the light purple lines are natural light and the darker purple lines are street lights, the black lines represent traffic flow, and the green lines represent long distance views and organic areas.
Although each annotation has its own individual meaning, the map as a whole can be studied and interpreted also.  There are a number of things to note about this mapping of Stonehouse.  Firstly there are a number of locations which have fallen as the focus of the annotations.  These areas are around Victoria Park, the coastal areas around the Royal Williams Yard, and Union Street. It is interesting that these areas specifically stand out as this suggests that there is a hidden potential in these areas that has not yet been uncovered.  Union street is particularly interesting in this way, as rather than being a empty green space alike to the other two, it is actually the most commercial and populated section of Stonehouse.  This is because the area acts as a highway through Stonehouse into the centre of Plymouth, and so is constantly used by drivers and pedestrians alike.  Although it is no surprise that Union Street been highlighted in this way, it is interesting that it comes up against two spaces that are very different to itself.
Another interesting aspect of this map is that the areas that are the focus of the mapping are also areas of historical interest. Union Street has always been a major road in the area, and used to be the centre of nightlife both for military and civilian locals, as well as an area that has a history of problems with drugs and violence.  The area around the Royal Williams Yard has gone through a number of different transformations. This includes the major Navy usage in previous years including during the World Wars, and the regeneration in current years into apartment and business space.  Finally the Victoria Park area has an interesting history as its topography has been changed over time due to human intervention.  It was originally a lake like area linked to Stonehouse Creek which ran between the Stonehouse and Devonport regions.  When the lake, known as Deadlake, became stagnant and a health risk in 1887 action was begun to fill in the area, and this was completed in 1898. (http://www.plymouthdata.info/Parks,%20Victoria.htm). This is particularly interesting as a changing topographical history in such a small period of time is quite a unique aspect.
Overall therefore this map allows for some interesting discoveries about the Stonehouse region that looks beyond the normal interpretations to the more hidden aspects of the environment.