A DIGITAL PATHFINDER FOR HISTORIC SITES

Abstract

The Digital Pathfinder for Historic Sites Project will develop a new model for tours at historic sites. It uses a hand-held GPS personal data assistant programmed with open source software to provide interactive digital maps, navigation, rich media, and other information about the site and its environment. The platform is cost-effective and flexible, allowing each visitor to select the path, duration, and depth of their tour. The start-up funds will focus on the Staatsburgh Estate, the largest of two Beaux Arts properties among the Great Estates of the Hudson River Valley. The mansion and grounds exemplify the elegant estates built by America's financial and industrial leaders during the Gilded Age, known as the American Renaissance, which lasted from 1876 to 1917. This period was marked by America's rapid economic growth and emergence as a world power. The template being developed will readily adapt to other great estates or any historic site or museum that interprets its grounds