The Extreme History Project

 

Click the picture above to see our Story Map of the Nevada City Cemetery

From sticks to the stars, technology has had a huge impact upon the human race. Today we often take for granted that we can get from Point A to B (and C, D, E, & F) using our phone, tablet, or GPS device. With the old, new and developing technologies we can also see into the past.

I am finishing my final semester at MSU this spring and have had the opportunity to not only foster my love of archaeology but also to really sink my teeth into the geospatial sciences with a minor in GIS. The sciences include GPS (Global Positioning System), GIS (Geographic Information System/Science), and Remote Sensing (measuring various wavelengths of the EM (Electromagnetic) Field) and more. In the summer of 2015 I was afforded the opportunity to be the GPS/GIS Project Lead for our Nevada City Cemetery Mapping Project. Through this I have been able to put into practice what I have been studying the past few years and be able to combine it with my passion for archaeology.

When you click below the link or picture below you will be taken to the ArcGIS Story Map page I created using the GPS information we gathered this past summer at the Nevada City Cemetery located in Madison County Montana. Actually the Story Map was to be about everyone buried in the cemetery when I realized that to truly tell the stories of those in the cemetery we would have to do something different. So the Story Map I made became the story of The Extreme History Project’s journey to tell the story of the people interred in the Nevada City Cemetery.

In order to truly to tell the tales of the residents at Nevada City Cemetery we are applying for funding to not only finish the mapping, sketching, and determination of the preservation status of the remaining graves but also to create in depth maps and information for each resident easily accessible by anyone. If you are interested in helping out with either your time or funding, please let us know!

I have thoroughly enjoyed being able to use what I have learned to reach into the past and I think it would be wonderful to be able to do that around the state. We have so many cemeteries and small graveyards all around Montana and it would be extraordinary to be able to map out everything and everyone.

One of the many, many benefits of using GIS for this project is that with all of the information we acquire we will be able to create searches and maps to see how many people died (according to the graves) in 1910-1920 and where they are located or how many women are buried and where. If we can also obtain the various ethnicities of the interred as well we would be able to chart where people died and see if we can find certain trends. With GIS there are so many possibilities including being able to link with other sets of data from around the state and country and being able to possibly map out patterns. This has been so amazing and I am so thrilled be a part of the Nevada City Cemetery Project.

Again, if you are interested in helping out in any way, please let us know!

Thanks for stopping by!

Nevada City Cemetery Story Map! Come take a look!