An interesting data visualization got my attention recently and I noticed it also got some nice traction on twitter via mentions and re-tweets... enter the Wal-Mart data visualization.

This map shows the viral-like spread of Wal-Mart store locations over time, starting in the early 1960's in Kansas and up to [almost] present day.

I'll admit, the paper trail of blog posts and articles describing the project was a bit of a paper chase and had me on a bit of a goose hunt, however, I did uncover some interesting tidbits on the history of this project, starting with an excellent blog post that provided a video describing the efforts to build the map using Freebase and authoring the animation using Modest Maps

See more about the map in this article and you can also download the raw wal-mart location data HERE

Direct link to GZ file here