This is a list of common atlas and gazetteer abbreviations. These abbreviations are not always used consistently between publications; some terms have fallen out of use over time. Older gazetteers and atlases often neglect to define abbreviations and underlying terms. Gazetteer and map abbreviations can show up in several forms: upper or lower case, with or without periods, sometimes with hyphens (e.g., Post Village may be P.V., PV, p.v., or p-v).
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/5/56/Charles_City_County_Virginia_1895.jpg/175px-Charles_City_County_Virginia_1895.jpg)
This list does not include direction headings (e.g., N. or No. for north, etc.), which are generally clear.
abbreviation | term | usage and notes |
---|---|---|
br. | Branch[1] | |
c. | Cape[1] | |
C.H. | Court House[1][2] | |
Co. | County | |
Cr. | Creek | |
c.t. | County Town[1] | similar to a county seat |
dist. | district | |
G. | Gulf[1] | |
Lat. | Latitude | |
Long. | Longitude | |
Mntn. | Mountains | |
ms., m. | miles | |
Nat'l | National | |
Par. | Parish[1] | |
Pt. | Point | |
P.O. | Post Office[2] | |
P.T. | Post Town[2] | A town having the chief post office of a local area.[3] |
P.V. | Post Village[2] | |
Sq. ms. | Square Miles | |
Sta. | Station[1] | often denotes a local rail road station[4] |
t. | town or township[1] | |
v. | village[1] | |
r.r. | rail road[1] |
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Chapin, William. A Complete Reference Gazetteer of the United States of North America. Phelps. & Ensign. 1841. Abbreviations. p16.
- ^ a b c d Martin, Joseph. A Comprehensive Description of Virginia and the District of Columbia. J.W. Randolph. Abbreviations. p14.
- ^ "post town". Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary. Merriam-Webster.
- ^ "The Houston and Texas Central Railway built through the area in 1860. In 1871 the site was chosen as the location of the proposed Texas A&M College, which opened in 1876. In 1877 a post office, College Station, was opened in a building near the railroad tracks, and the community took its name from the post office." (Odintz, Mark. "COLLEGE STATION, TX." The Handbook of Texas Online | Texas State Historical Association (TSHA), 12 Jun 2010. Web. 22 Jul 2019)