Historical discovery map

Know where to look before you go.

Explore researched digging, detecting and rockhounding sites, uncover forgotten places on historic maps, and see the evidence, terrain and access rules in one place.

Explore the free map →See a real site →
Free to explore, no account required. Start a free 7-day Pro trial, no card →
12,660Researched sitesWith evidence and access rules
118,000+Historic leadsTownsites, schools, churches and more
10+Map layersHistoric maps, LiDAR, geology, 3D terrain and more
TodayOld USGS survey
LiDAR Pro 3D Terrain
130,000+places to hunt
12,660researched sites
7continents
Every dotaccess-aware
Real places. Real answers.

One site, fully explained.

From the exact spot and the legal picture to the evidence, the old maps and the best time to go, every site brings the whole story together.

Charleston, SC · tidal mudflat
Drum Island shoreline
T2 documentedLicensedLow pressure
Where exactly
Exact pin with Pro

Or a mapped zone you localize with the historic maps. Public coordinates: 32.80, -79.92.

Is it legal
Yes, with a hobby license

SC hobby license ($18 to $36): hand recovery on state tidelands, up to 10 artifacts a day, quarterly report.

The evidence
“Boatloads of old bottles hauled off this shore.”

Tier 2: documented by a named cleanup group.

Old maps · then and now
↔

Compare the old USGS survey with today’s shoreline.

When to go
Next low tide 3:41 pm

1.2 ft. Work the ebb: pluff mud, exposed roots and oyster beds.

◉Real-world sitesResearched from maps, archives and finds reports.
☰Clear answersLegal access, evidence and old maps on every card.
➤Plan the tripTides, conditions and what to watch for.
⚒Built by huntersBy mudlarkers and diggers, for mudlarkers and diggers.
Explore any site

Six questions, answered before you go.

The practical answers every hunter needs, on a map you can trust. Tap a question.

⚲Real dataMaps, records and land rules in one place.
☷Plain answersComplex rules turned into yes, no or ask.
➤Plan with confidenceWhere to go, what to look for, when to visit.
MUDLARK MAP⚲  Search places, rivers, sites…
Field tools

Everything you check before a hunt, on one map.

Land rules, the oldest maps, the terrain under the trees and 118,000 forgotten places. Real screens from the app.

Mudlark Map land check showing No detecting at Bodie State Historic ParkFREE

Can I detect here?

Tap any spot in the US, UK or Ireland. We read the public land records and tell you if detecting is banned, needs a permit, or just needs the owner’s OK.
Map of Knox County, Ohio dotted with old schools, churches and post officesFREE

118,000 forgotten places

Old schoolhouses, churches, post offices and lost townsites from the USGS record, every one a tap away from a land check.
Oldest USGS topo map of Placerville, California over the satellite viewFREE

The oldest map of every spot

Flip on the earliest USGS topo and see the 1890s schoolhouse, mill and wagon road sitting on top of today.
LiDAR terrain showing old roads under the woods at Dogtown, MassachusettsPRO

See through the trees

Bare-earth LiDAR shading shows old roads, foundations and cellar holes that satellite photos hide.
Dump finder wedges around a Montana gold campPRO

Find the likely dump

We read the terrain around an old townsite and shade where people threw their trash: downhill, out of sight, close to the road.
Active mining claims and section grid near Rhyolite, NevadaFREE

Claims and section lines

See who holds the mineral rights across the West, with the survey grid you need to read old land records.
🧪 Date a bottle in five looks⏺ Record your hunt💾 Offline maps✉ Landowner permission letter🌊 Live tides🏺 Daily bottle game Open the map

Two hunts, one map.

Artifacts & relics

Follow where people used to be.

Mudflats, old landings, dumps, riverbanks and historic sites.

Rocks & gems

Follow the geology.

Public ground, collecting sites, mines and known mineral localities.

Daily game
Unearthedby Mudlark Map

The daily antique bottle quiz. How well do you know your digs?

Five questions a day for bottle diggers, mudlarks and rockhounds. Real bottles, real history, real places. Free, no account needed.

📍
Where?Drop a pin where it was bottled, blown or found
🏺
Bottle typeHutchinson, Codd, blob top, pontil, flask
💊
What was it for?Cures, tonics, bitters and what was really inside
🏭
Who made it, and when?Glassworks, druggists, inventors and first-blown years
Play today’s dig
A new puzzle every midnight. Keep your streak and share your score.
Bottle typePhoto round
Peach puce 1850s calabash flask with a hunter and a fisherman
An 1850s flask with a hunter on one side and a fisherman on the other. What do collectors call this gourd-shaped style?
Coffin flaskCalabash flaskChestnut flaskPicnic flask
Photo: Golden Gate Bottle Auctions
What was it for?Round 3 of 5
Mrs. Winslow’s Soothing Syrup was sold from the 1840s to calm teething babies. Doctors later called it a “baby killer”. What was in it?
Arsenic Morphine Cocaine Strychnine
The American Medical Association branded it a baby killer in 1911. Every answer comes with the history and a source.

Old map. Modern satellite. One spot.

↔
Today
Historic survey
Carquinez Strait, California. Historic USGS survey over today's imagery, drag to compare. In the app: Sanborn fire-insurance sheets, georeferenced overlays and topoView, pinned to the site you are researching.

Research built in.

Sanborn sheets, historical topos, georeferenced map search and 1800s newspapers, one tap from any site card.

Your data stays yours.

Finds and saved sites are private to your account. No public feed, no location leaks.

Explore free. Go Pro when you want the exact spot.

Free
  • The whole atlas, general areas
  • Site context and history
  • Evidence tiers and access status
  • “Can I detect here?” legal check, US, UK and Ireland
  • Hunt recorder, bottle dating tool and the daily game
Pro
  • Exact pin and dig zones
  • Where-exactly field notes
  • Historic overlays and research links
  • Live tide and light timing
  • LiDAR terrain and the likely-dump finder
  • Offline maps for no-signal hunts
  • Private find log with photos
7-day trial, no card, then billed yearly$5.99/mo Founding lifetime · first 100 members$249 once

Founding price: $71.88 a year, locked in for as long as you stay subscribed.

Discover hidden places.

130,000+ places to hunt. 12,660 researched sites with the evidence behind every one.

Open the map