GIS Data Download Sites on the Internet

Local and Regional (NC) Data Sources | NC Data Sources | US Data Sources | Global and/or International Data Sources


Local and Regional (North Carolina) Data Resources

  • Many county and city governments allow data downloads from their websites. For the most current local data links, go to the Counties or Cities pages.



Animal Feeding Operations Map
Animal Feeding Operations, March 2013

North Carolina Finding Aids

Many public download sites for statewide datasets are listed on the webpages found linked under the Libraries Geodata Collection.

NC OneMap
NC OneMap is a public service providing comprehensive discovery and access to North Carolina's geospatial data resources.

Department of Environment and Natural Resources

Air Quality Permits
Albemarle-Pamlico National Estuary Partnerships - Maps and Data
Coastal Management - Maps and data downloads
NC Dams Program - Click the date link under the heading "North Carolina Dam Inventory"
Geodetic Survey - Entire site has numerous GIS and GPS resources and tools.

State and County Boundary Download - Regularly updated official version
NC Geodetic Stations - File downloads are at the bottom of the page
Geodetic Monuments
Department of Transportation
Listing of GIS and Mapping resources offered by NCDOT

Floodplain Mapping Program

North Carolina State Center for Health Statistics

State Data Center
Demographics and other tabular data - can be mapped by county or other geographies in the tables.

Finding Quads Names for Areas of Interest
Interactive North Carolina 1:24,000, 1:100,000 and 1:250,000 scale topographic map indexes are web accessible from the North Carolina Geological Survey.



U.S. Finding Aids

Geo.Data.gov
Growing comprehensive source for data from federal executive branch agencies in multiple formats.

National Atlas Map Layers Warehouse
Download site for National Atlas data layers, most of which were compiled at a scale of 1:2,000,000.

FGDC Geospatial Data Clearinghouse
The national Geospatial Data Clearinghouse, a collection of over 50 spatial data servers that index digital geographic data. Can be searched through a choice of interfaces.

USGS Links to Maps and Other Products
Links to many sources of Aerial Photographs & Satellite Imagery, Digital Maps & Data, Publications, Software, etc.

USGS Geodata Download Site
Downloadable DEM (1:250,000 and 7.5'), DLG (1:2,000,000; 1,100,000 and 1:24,000), LULC data, and NHD.

USGS National Map
Interactive map showing availability of USGS data products for across the country.

USGS Water Resources
Downloadable spatial data files for exploration and analysis of water resources.

USDA Geospatial Data Gateway
Provides One Stop Shopping for natural resources or environmental data. Choose your area of interest, browse and select data from our catalog, customize the format, and have it downloaded or shipped on CD.

US Fish and Wildlife Services National Data Sets.
US Fish and Wildlife Service Link page.

US Census Bureau Data Center
Listing of online resources, including data, from the Census Bureau.

NOAA National Weather Service
National Weather Service data sets available in downloadable shapefiles, web services and KML files.

FCC Licensing Database
Communications GIS data from the Federal Communications Commission.

FEMA GeoPortal
Geospatial data and analysis that informs emergency management.

Starting the Hunt, A Guide To Mostly On-line And Mostly Free U.S. Geospatial and Attribute Data
Extensive subject-oriented list of data resources.

GIS Inventory
An inventory of GIS data and directory of GIS people nationwide, maintained by the National States Geographic Information Council.


Global and/or International Data

Open Street Map
Comprehensive crowdsourced data. Compiled into shapefiles for download at WeoGeo and Cloud Made

UN Food and Agriculture Organization GeoNetwork
Search for spatial databases, digital maps, satellite images and related statistics covering areas worldwide, produced by UN organizations.

Global Change Master Directory
Directory of many earth science data sources and services available worldwide.

Canadian Geospatial Data Infrastructure
Data, maps, images, news, and more from Canada

United Kingdom

Ordinance Survey OpenData - Government site, free access to selected datasets
GoGeo - Crowdsourced data

China Data Center
Univ. of Michigan center that provides variety of data resources on China, including GIS


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