While skimming through an article about ordering paper maps online I discovered a fact that was new to me. Mapmakers at Hagstrom and AAA add a nonexistent destination to every map in order to protect their copyright. The director of cartography at Hagstrom says “Every map has a few signature streets, usually something off a cul de sac where you’re not going to lead someone astray, and our researchers name them after their cats or something.” I idly wondered if there are people who make a hobby out of finding the fake streets on maps. If so, it’s not easy to find them on the web, so if you know of a site that lists fake map locations, send it along. I did find an old article that called these copyright features “key traps” and “paper streets”. It also quotes someone who says that mapmakers have always done this to protect their work. But a Rand McNally spokesman says that their maps are as accurate as possible, with nothing fictitious. That’s bad news for the cats of Rand McNally mapmakers.