The grant project, Digitization of Ecologic History in the Driftless Area of Minnesota, included digitizing and preserving items that highlight the Driftless area: an 1862 transcription of the 1855 U.S. federal land survey of Winona, which was the first U.S. survey of the area, and two botanical books with specimens that were collected by students at the Winona Normal School; one is from 1899 and the other from 1912. However, the main portion of the grant was to collaborate on a shared resource, a story map titled, “Exploring the Ecological History of Winona, Minnesota.” WSU contracted with St. Mary’s University of Minnesota Geospatial Services (SMUMN-GSS) to reconstruct a map of the vegetative communities in the city of Winona based on the 1855 land survey and other available data, which examined the ecological change in Winona. Additionally, SMUMN-GSS used the data found in the botanical specimen books to create the story map, “Historic Winona Township Plant Specimen Collections.”
This project was made possible in part by the people of Minnesota through a grant funded by an appropriation to the Minnesota Historical Society from the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.
-
Digitization of Ecological History in the Driftless Area of Minnesota
St. Mary's University of Minnesota-GeoSpatial Services and Winona State University-Library Special Collections
The Winona County Historical Society (WCHS) and Winona State University (WSU) collaborated on applying for a Heritage Partnership grant to produce shared resources with the goal to educate the Winona community about the local ecological history of the area. The grant provided the opportunity to hire St. Mary's University of Minnesota - GeoSpatial Services to reconstruct a map fo the vegetative communities in the city of Winona based on a 1855 land survey and other available data. An 1862 transcription of the 1855 of the land survey was found in the WCHS Laird Norton Archive, which was the starting point for this project. The surveyor's field notes provide a record of the Winona area as it appeared during this time period, including landmarks, vegetation and other natural resources.
The goal of this project was to use a Geographic Information System (GIS) to digitally compile and map the landscape observations contained in the historical land survey and develop methods to effectively share this information with the local community. The StoryMap was produced as part of this effort and reviews the process used to create a historical land cover map of the Winona area using the land survey field notes. Scroll through the StoryMap to learn more and explore the ecological history of Winona, Minnesota. This document is the final report that details the project and the final product.
-
Exploring the Ecological History of Winona, Minnesota: A StoryMap
St. Mary's University of Minnesota-GeoSpatial Services, Winona State University-Library Special Collections, and Winona County Historical Society
The Winona County Historical Society (WCHS) and Winona State University (WSU) collaborated on applying for a Heritage Partnership grant to produce shared resources with the goal to educate the Winona community about the local ecological history of the area. The grant provided the opportunity to hire St. Mary's University of Minnesota - GeoSpatial Services to reconstruct a map fo the vegetative communities in the city of Winona based on a 1855 land survey and other available data. An 1862 transcription of the 1855 of the land survey was found in the WCHS Laird Norton Archive, which was the starting point for this project. The surveyor's field notes provide a record of the Winona area as it appeared during this time period, including landmarks, vegetation and other natural resources.
The goal of this project was to use a Geographic Information System (GIS) to digitally compile and map the landscape observations contained in the historical land survey and develop methods to effectively share this information with the local community. This StoryMap was produced as part of this effort and reviews the process used to create a historical land cover map of the Winona area using the land survey field notes. Scroll through the StoryMap to learn more and explore the ecological history of Winona, Minnesota.
-
Historic Winona Township Plant Specimen Collections: A StoryMap
St. Mary's University of Minnesota-GeoSpatial Services, Winona State University-Library Special Collections, and Winona County Historical Society
The Winona State University College of Education archival collection include a historic botanical specimen book (herbarium) collected and curated by Alice Ford in 1912 while as a student at the Winona Normal School. The Winona County Historical Society's collections include Helen J. Monahan's 1899 botanical specimen book (hearbarium) collected and curated while as a student at the Winona Normal School. Both botanical specimen books (herbarium) were submitted as final projects for Botany classes taught by John M. Holzinger. This StoryMap was inspired by and used information from Alice Ford's 1912 botanical specimen book and Helen J. Monahan 1899 botanical specimen book.
