Ordnance Survey International

Ordnance Survey International, formerly (1946–57) Directorate of Colonial Surveys, (1957–84) Directorate of Overseas Surveys, and (1984–91) Overseas Surveys Directorate, former surveying, mapping, and aerial photography agency (1946–2001) of the British government, which provided advice on technical matters concerning all aspects of surveying and mapping.

The maps created by the agency were produced using aerial photography and photogrammetric methods. Aerial photography missions were flown mainly by air survey companies of the United Kingdom, and surveyors were sent overseas to establish horizontal and vertical ground control for the photography. After maps were compiled from the aerial photography, plots of the maps were checked and annotated. Final maps were drawn at the agency’s headquarters and printed by Ordnance Survey of Great Britain. The agency’s technical libraries provided facilities for consultation of survey data and maps of the countries in which the agency had worked. The organization also disseminated information on new techniques and equipment in the fields of surveying, photogrammetry, and cartography.

The Directorate of Colonial Surveys was formed as an agency of the Colonial Office in 1946. It became part of the Department of Technical Cooperation in 1961 (as the Directorate of Overseas Surveys). In 1964 it became part of the Ministry of Overseas Development, and in 1970 it was incorporated into the newly constituted Overseas Development Administration. The agency was subsumed by Ordnance Survey in 1984 and was renamed the Overseas Surveys Directorate. It became Ordnance Survey International in 1991 following the completion of its scheduled surveys. The agency then consulted for other countries before disbanding in 2001. Its archives were closed to the public in 2003 and were portioned off to other institutions for maintenance.

Ordnance Survey, which persisted as a domestic government agency, established Ordnance Survey International LLP, a consultancy company, in 2012. The company provided advice on mapping and its economic implications to other countries.