DPH HIST 694 students have worked on various methods of public history from oral history to social media, geolocation, or history from a specific location through applications such as Clio or digital public history websites that cover a specific location or event such as the history of the national mall. Digital Public History allows scholars, museum curators, archivists, librarians, and other individuals to bring their work to the public in an interactive fashion more than simply reading a paper. Digital Public historians utilize various technologies and methodologies in order to share their work with the general public. Various methodologies influence the type of public history that digital humanists decide to pursue.
Digital Public History has allowed historians and other researchers to convey how the history of a specific place influences its present as well as present events and individuals. One of my favorite DH websites is the Histories of the National Mall created by the RRCHNM. It allows users to view an interactive map of the National Mall as well as view important historical figures, landmarks, and events that have occurred during its history into the present day. A subsequent DH site is Clio, which functions as an application for iPhone and Android smartphones as well as a website that allows individuals to request that a specific landmark be included within a specific area.
Digital Public History technologies such as mapping and text analysis allow DH scholars the opportunity to communicate their ideas to the public in new ways. It is an interesting way to utilize new media technology to become digital storytellers and convey our shared love of studying the past with present-day audiences.
