Imagine an emergency coordinator being able to better calculate the response time in advance if a natural disaster threatened. Or imagine being able to view how a town has evolved within the last century with one click of a mouse.
A partnership between NCPTT and the Cane River National Heritage Area (CRNHA) is making these scenarios possible by bringing a Geographic Information System (GIS) to northwest Louisiana where both organizations are headquartered.
GIS is a collection of computer hardware, software and geographic data for capturing, managing, analyzing and displaying all forms of geographically referenced information. The system is used in many agencies and organizations and companies.
CRNHA's GIS was created in 2004 to store area maps, past and present. NCPTT houses and maintains the system, which allows users to identify and match property locations and dimensions from any point in the property's documented history.
Rolonda Teal, program manager at the CRNHA, believes the system is crucial to understanding and making informed decisions about preservation issues as well as understanding local culture.
"GIS allows us to take information from historical documents and place them in a data set," Teal said. "It is being used to identify 'places of memory,' locations that may no longer exist, yet are very much alive in the minds of people who lived near or frequented those areas."
Nancy Morgan, CRNHA executive director, views the GIS as an important tool for the preservation of the rural areas along Cane River. "We look forward to using the GIS for land use planning as well as a tool to help preserve a sense of place in the rural areas of the Cane River region," Morgan said. "This technology is an important asset to document the significant history of the region since its economy relies on heritage tourism."
With GIS, users can link information to location data, such as people to addresses, buildings to tax parcels or streets within a network. Additionally, users could layer the information based on the information they are seeking.
"As the National Park Service's center for advancing the use of technology in preservation, NCPTT is excited about the potential of this project," Kirk Cordell, NCPTT executive director, said. "The system will provide a powerful tool for our researchers and the preservation professionals who attend our training courses."
GIS will also provide educational opportunities for students at Northwestern State University of Louisiana's Master's of Heritage Resources Program (MAHR), which was recently awarded a grant from the Louisiana Board of Regents. The grant will build a GIS facility on the campus that will facilitate joint research projects between both GIS programs. ElizaBeth Guin, MAHR program coordinator, says both systems working cooperatively will produce far-reaching benefits.
"Our students will have the advantage of working with technologies on a scale not available in many graduate preservation programs," Guin said. "Our combined efforts will not only contribute to the resources and capabilities of the Cane River Region but the national preservation dialog as well."