Historian of Route 66, the American Southwest, and the role of myth in national, regional, and local community definition, culture, and collective memory and its implications for American society
I wrote an article for The Conversation about Route 66 and the amendment of the National Trails System Act to add Route 66 as a federally recognized historic trail. Federal recognition brings historic preservation and economic development benefits to communities along the route.
Federal recognition will go a long way to allow places like Peach Springs, Arizona to capitalize on their history to rebuild their economies after the interstate bypass decimated them.
This old gas station, for example, qualifies for the National Register of Historic Places. This amendment could help deliver resources to get it listed and preserved.
An abandoned Standard Oil gas station in Peach Springs, Arizona
On June 26, 1985, highway officials decertified Route 66. The decertification vote ended Route 66 as a federal highway diverting traffic away from remaining segments. This action had significant impacts for communities along the route with many suffering steep economic decline or becoming ghost towns.
An abandoned Standard Oil gas station in Peach Springs, Arizona
This abandoned gas station is in Peach Springs, AZ. Cars would have been lined up three deep at these pumps before the bypass.
An abandoned building from an auto-camp in Two Guns, Arizona.
The community of Two Guns, Arizona, despite getting an exit off of I-40, became a ghost town after Route 66 was decertified. Abandoned building like this former auto-camp are all that is left.
The interstate highway project was viewed by many as a shining example of progress. For many communities in America, however, it ushered in an era of steep decline and even oblivion.
This is a gallery of photographs showing the diversity in housing styles in the San Juan – Marshall neighborhood. Unlike most post-war neighborhoods, the San Juan – Marshall neighborhood was developed with a mix of housing styles including earlier pre-war styles, pre-war ramblers and post-war ramblers. The houses also reflect diversity in construction methods from traditional block to wood and stucco. This diversity in housing stock is evidence of how the neighborhood was a transitional place where the old methods of development were giving way to new post-war methods.
Wedged between affluent Rancho Solano and historic Medlock Place, sits a neighborhood at the vertex of post-war urban change in Phoenix. Given the nature and timing of its development, it is a strong candidate for historic preservation. However, it has not received historic status due to class issues and a city ethic that values progress and redevelopment over preservation[1]. Specifically, it has likely been overlooked for historic designation because it was a neighborhood of affordable homes sandwiched between two larger affluent neighborhoods,[2] and since preservation efforts in Phoenix largely are citizen led[3].
This map shows the location and boundaries of the San Juan – Marshall neighborhood. The highlighted area is between Seventh and Central Avenues, and Missouri Avenue and the now abandoned San Miguel Avenue.
In the period from 1945 to 2000, it underwent two distinct periods of change. The first was a rapid period of transformation where the area transitioned from farming to residential housing from 1946 to 1959. This shift was fueled by the larger trend of rapid post-war urban expansion across the country[4]. Likewise, during this time home building rapidly changed. Individual builders contracting with lot owners directly gave way to larger builders utilizing mass production techniques.[5] This neighborhood straddles these transformations.
This map illustrates the change over time in the San Juan Marshall neighborhood from 1946 to 2000. Areas where structures overlap are where older buildings were demolished for new construction.
The second was a period of redevelopment beginning in the late 60s fueled by the exodus of the original homeowners. This period saw some of the original homes redeveloped into denser multi-unit developments, the expansion of commercial property, and then a retrenchment from commercial development[6]. However, the bulk of the original neighborhood remains, and is historically significant as an example of a place caught between the slower, smaller pre-war growth conducted on a more individualized scale, and the post-war mass production housing boom starting in the mid-50s.
This chart shows ownership changes for three properties in San Juan – Marshall from 1946 to 2000. 1946 to 1964 represents a period of high stability with no ownership change. The period from 1964 to 2000 has ownership changes of four or more owners.
Digital history methods were used to document the neighborhood’s history and change over time. Primary documents were analyzed from online databases such as county recorder and assessor records, aerial photographs, digital newspaper collections, and discussions with local residents. Analysis methods included photo analysis, HGIS map creation, charting real estate data, oral history, and textual analysis of newspaper articles.
[1] Gober, Patricia. Metropolitan Portraits: Metropolitan Phoenix: Place Making and Community Building in the Desert. Philadelphia, US: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2013. Accessed October 26, 2016. ProQuest ebrary.
[2] “High Class,” Arizona Republic (Phoenix, AZ), July 3, 1946. “$1150 Beat These,” Arizona Republic (Phoenix, AZ), November 23, 1946. “Open 1-5 Today 518 West San Juan,” Arizona Republic (Phoenix, AZ), January 22, 1950; the home advertised here was listed for $13,500. A year earlier, a Rancho Solano home was listed for $40,000, see “Luxurious Rancho Solano Estate,” Arizona Republic (Phoenix, AZ), May 29, 1949.
[3] “Historic Preservation FAQs” City of Phoenix, Accessed December 2, 2016, https://www.phoenix.gov/pdd/about/faq/historic-preservation-faqs
[4] “Historical Aerial Photography,” Maricopa County GIS Portal, Accessed December 2, 2016, http://gis.maricopa.gov/MapApp/GIO/AerialHistorical/index.html. See aerial photos for this area for 1949, 1953, and 1959. For a description of the rapid urban growth in Phoenix specifically and the United States generally during this period see Philip VanderMeer’s book Desert Visions and the Making of Phoenix, 1860-2009, pages 187 – 205.
VanderMeer, Philip. Desert Visions and the Making of Phoenix, 1860-2009. Albuquerque, US: University of New Mexico Press, 2012. Accessed October 26, 2016. ProQuest ebrary.
[5] VanderMeer, Philip. Desert Visions and the Making of Phoenix, 1860-2009. Albuquerque, US: University of New Mexico Press, 2012. Accessed October 26, 2016. ProQuest ebrary.
[6] “Historical Aerial Photography,” Maricopa County GIS Portal, Accessed December 2, 2016, http://gis.maricopa.gov/MapApp/GIO/AerialHistorical/index.html. See aerial photos for this area for 1949, 1953, 1959, 1969, 1979, 1997, and 2000. 1949 to 1959 show the area building out as residential homes. 1969 to 1979 show the encroachment of commercial property and the building of multifamily housing, and the 1997 and 2000 photos show the reclaiming of land for residential use particularly along San Juan Avenue near Central Avenue.
Digital history tools and methods have shaped spatial analysis, data analysis, and visualization of that data in profound ways. Many discussions of digital history focus on data analysis versus visualization. However, the two are more complementary than divergent. I have found data analysis tools often generate interesting visuals, and the process of creating visualizations of data analysis often creates new insight into the data creating new pathways for further analysis.
Straightforward examples of this are charts and graphs. The term visualization can seem complicated until you realize that it is simply referring to rendering data in a visual format rather than text. One of the most ubiquitous types of visualization is the data chart. Most people inside and outside of academia have seen and often created charts for school, work, or personal projects. Charts have a unique ability to render complex data accessibly.
Currently, I am conducting a place history of a small north-central Phoenix, Arizona neighborhood. I will be using charts as a powerful visualization tool to demonstrate factors driving change over time in this neighborhood. The neighborhood I am analyzing was part of the post-war housing boom that expanded Phoenix northward rapidly in the decades following WWII. Multiple factors propelled the expansion of the city northward, however a prominent driver of this expansion was affluent Phoenicians seeking larger homes on larger lots during the post-war economic expansion. As such, class factors heavily into the history of north-central Phoenix neighborhoods. Given this, consider the following chart:
Median Income 1990 to 2013 in North central Phoenix, Arizona
Although outside of the specific time period I am analyzing for my place history, this chart (based on census data from socialexplorer.com), visualizes median income changes in inflation adjusted 2013 dollars over the 1990 to 2013 time period. It focuses on the census tracts north of McDowell Avenue and south of Northern Avenue in Phoenix. Pre-war, Phoenix ended at Thomas Avenue (Census tract 1118). Known as the Willow neighborhood, census tract 1118 has historically been wealthy. Census tracts 1105, 1171, and 1088 north of town pre-war were largely farming areas or locations where cheap lots could be purchased for home building. Post war, intense housing expansion began in census tracts 1075 (Medlock Place), 1066 (San Juan Marshall and Rancho Solano), and 1062. Medlock Place and Rancho Solano were marketed to wealthy homebuyers looking for larger lots and bigger homes in the late 40s and early 50s. Census tract 1062 featured even larger properties built in the 60s. Over time, the wealthy leapt over census tracts 1105, 1171, and 1088 seeking larger and larger properties northward. The data visualized in the chart suggests the effects of this leap frogging pattern persisted into the present with 1075, 1066, and 1062 retaining their wealthy inhabitants and 1105, 1171, and 1088 remaining poorer. The effects of income inequality over the last twenty-five years can also be seen as the richer census tracts largely retain and grow their wealth whereas median income in the poorer census tracts stays flat or declines.
This chart is a straightforward example of how data visualization can make complex trends readily accessible. For my place history, I intend to use charts to visualize aspect of change in the neighborhood like the ones shown in this chart. A specific example I am working on is charting the quantity of lots for sale as expressed in newspaper ads in the Phoenix Republic each year from 1945 to 1985 to show the size and pace of the post-war housing boom. Another, more narrow example, is to similarly chart the number of ads over time for lots and homes available in San Juan – Marshall to visualize how quickly the neighborhood filled in.
3D visualizations are another example of digital visualizations both making complex data accessible and creating new insight into the data. Although some may be surprised that 3D modeling is used in digital history, many historians have utilized 3D modeling techniques to great effect. The St. Paul’s Cathedral Project hosted by North Carolina State University is an example. The project recreated St. Paul’s Cathedral from the early seventeenth century using 3D modeling. The recreation allows viewers to experience what worship and preaching at the cathedral was like in that time. Specially, the project recreated the physical environment in existence when parishioners heard John Donne’s sermon for Gunpowder Day on November 5th, 1622 in Paul’s Churchyard located in the center courtyard of the structure. The project used 3D modeling to recreate both the physical space and texture mapping to emulate the building surfaces. This data was then used to acoustically model the space so that a recording of Donne’s speech could be made that would sound like how parishioners heard it during the actual sermon centuries ago. Recreating an environment like this using 3D modeling tools is particularly useful when you consider that the structure in question no longer exists. Old St. Paul’s cathedral burned down centuries ago. It is only accessible to researchers and the public through this virtual modeling project.
I am using 3D modeling in my place history as well. Here is an example:
A 3D View of the San Juan – Marshall neighborhood from the Setter Farm looking west.
Based on an aerial photograph from 1949, this 3D scene looks west from the modern intersection of San Juan Avenue and Central Avenue in Phoenix. From this vantage point, The Setter Farm is in the foreground with the Otter Farm to the South and the San Miguel subdivision in the background to the far west. The San Miguel subdivision was the first part of the San Juan – Marshall neighborhood plated and built. From a modern perspective, this entire area is all homes now. It is natural to assume it has always been like that. As I built this model and analyzed it from various perspectives, I settled on the point-of-view shown as particularly insightful. From this vantage point, the agricultural orientation of the area is quite prominent. Viewed from the San Miguel side, the model view seems to suggest a suburban dominance. However, viewed from the Setter Farm side you see that in 1949 agriculture still dominated the area. By 1959 this was no longer the case as all the farms are gone.
This is an example of how data visualizations can create new insights that lead to new avenues for research. Given the insights gleaned from this model, I intend to build further models off of newer aerial photographs to see what these visualizations tell me about the changes the area experienced over time.
As these examples illustrate, digital analysis tools and digital visualizations work together in a complementary fashion. The tools allow for data creation and analysis that often yields insightful visualizations. The visualizations, however, can also lead to new perspectives and avenues for further research. This powerful combination is continually shaping the practice of history.
“Virtual St Paul’s Cathedral Project.” Virtual St Paul’s Cathedral Project. Accessed November 20, 2016. https://vpcp.chass.ncsu.edu/
Hello World, and welcome to the introductory post on my blog.
I currently work in the field of interactive media development and online publishing, but I am also a history graduate student at Arizona State University. I am looking to transition into working as a historian in the future.
My research interests include the Civil War Era, transportation networks, and media representation of current and historical events. Along that line, in a recent class, I wrote a research paper on how Civil War era newspapers portrayed the question of formal recognition of the CSA by Britain, and how it differed from the actual diplomatic reality of the time.
Related to one of my research interests, here is an article from Time written by my Civil War Era professor Dr, Calvin Schermerhorn. It discusses how Baltimore, Maryland’s current racial troubles recently brought to the surface during the Freddie Gray incident have a history rooted in Slavery dating back before the Civil War.
