Touring historic Capitol Hill will take on new meaning at the Library of Congress this week.

The Library of Congress Geography and Map Division is offering its first ever tour and talk on historic folio maps of Capitol Hill on Wednesday.

The tour will feature the Library’s collection of Sanborn Fire Insurance maps, which were commissioned in 12,000 cities between 1880 and 1950 to help insurance companies gauge risk factors and rates.

The meticulously detailed maps document everything from the materials and number of windows used in each building to the name of the local proprietors.

“Maps are an incredible source of information,” said Kay Elsasser, a Library of Congress volunteer who organized the event. “You can look at these, and you can see how things evolved.”

The tour will take place at 10 a.m. in the Madison Building of the Library of Congress. It is free to the public, but reservations are requested. To register or for more information, call 202-544-0552.

Boys & Girls Clubs To Honor Pomeroy

The Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Washington on Tuesday will recognize the hard work of four people who have made contributions to either BGCGW or the national organization Boys & Girls Clubs of America, including Rep. Earl Pomeroy (D-N.D.). The group will fete the honorees at its 23rd Annual Congressional Dinner.

The other honorees are Secretary of Energy Samuel Bodman and local philanthropists Evan and Cindy Jones.

Pomeroy is being recognized for his work on the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act, which was passed in 2006. The act classifies sex offenders into three tiers and requires the worst offenders to update their location every three months. Failure to register is a felony.

Kerrin Torres, spokeswoman for BGCGW, said Pomeroy was instrumental in creating the provision that established the Dru Sjodin National Sex Offender Public Registry Web site.

Torres said the Web site was a huge contribution to the Boys and Girls Clubs of America, which is known as “The Positive Place for Kids” and is dedicated to helping children of all backgrounds develop the skills to become good citizens.

“The National Sex Offender Web site is a resource available to the Boys and Girls Club thanks to Congressman Pomeroy,” Torres said. “We care for 35,000 children annually, and it’s very important to make sure our children are safe.”

— Torey Van Oot and Jessica DaSilva