Category: Photographs

Historic Images from the National Forests and Grasslands in Texas

by zselden 1 Comment

The photo archive of historic images from the National Forests and Grasslands in Texas  (NFGT) has been digitized, and the images are available for download under a Creative Commons License in ScholarWorks – https://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/nfgt_general/

Using modern tools, a composite image of the grounds where the current NFGT Supervisor’s Office resides was assembled, providing a view of that landscape from 1938 (below and header). By using the embedded Google Map, and clicking on show satellite imagery at the bottom left of that map, you can see just how much this site has changed through the years.

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There are some important images associated with regional history that are included in the gallery. A great example of this an image of the El Camino Real that passed through the Sabine National Forest (click on the images below to learn more, including the option to download them at multiple resolutions).

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El Camino Real – Sabine National Forest.
Photographer: Unknown

Another important moment in history for the NFGT was the introduction of prescribed burns. There are a few great images of prescribed fires included in the gallery; however, it appears that they may have a photograph of the first prescribed fire on the Angelina National Forest, along with some of the Civilian Conservation Corps volunteers who were learning how to conduct the burns.

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Controlled burn – Fire #1 – Angelina National Forest.
Photographer: Erwin A. Heers
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Hose Fire CCC – Angelina National Forest.
Photographer: Unknown

Another noteworthy image is of the first house that was built in Shelby County, Texas. There are several other images of local architecture that are included in the gallery, to include the interior of the first Protestant Church in East Texas, examples of special use cabins, and some images of the Aldridge Saw Mill ruins in 1935.

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The first house to be built in Shelby County, Texas – Built about 150 years ago [before the image was taken in 1938]. Photo shows present tenant and her youngest child – Close to Sabine National Forest.
Photographer: Muir, Bluford

For the archaeologists and historians, there is even an early (ca. 1938) image of Mound C at the George C. Davis site included in the gallery, which is not restricted only to the forests, but also includes additional historic images from the surrounding area.

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Davis Site – Mound C- An Indian Mound of the Neches [Caddo] Indians. This mound is located close to Kings Highway, Route 21, and is just outside the boundary of Davy Crockett National Forest. Recreational Assistant Heers is standing on top of the mound. The Indians were expelled from here in 1839 – Near Davy Crockett National Forest.
Photographer: Muir, Bluford

In total, there are over 1500 images included in the digital gallery. The images are organized chronologically (earliest images will be in the last pages), and those images without a date appear in the first few pages. I encourage you to browse the gallery, and share or download some of these important records of local regional heritage.

This project was funded through Participating Agreement 15-PA-11081300-32 between the Center for Regional Heritage Research at Stephen F. Austin State University, and the National Forests and Grasslands in Texas. All images are available for download on ScholarWorks, and are distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.

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Using Point-and-Shoot Cameras to Create a Photo Log (and More!) in Google Maps, Google Earth and GIS

by zselden 1 Comment

The potential of cameras with on-board Global Positioning Systems (GPS) and compasses to aid in archaeological fieldwork are substantial. While my experience is limited to the Nikon Coolpix AW100, there are several point-and-shoot cameras on the market that can expand our current practices to create more robust photo logs using data exported directly from the camera.

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From a business perspective, this decreases the time needed to create (then digitize) photo logs associated with field projects, and provides viewers with an improved contextual experience. While for some it has become second nature to think in terms of N246/E132, there are some of us (myself included) that would benefit greatly from a better system. This is not to say that the provenience data should not be included in the catalog; far from it. Rather, it provides a method by which it is possible to view each photo (and the direction the photo was taken, to include a variety of other attributes assigned by the user) within a more dynamic context.

In most cases, the photos would be renamed (perhaps inclusive of the provenance data), but for this demonstration, I chose to keep the default names (i.e., DSC8302, etc.). In the map below, you can view the selected attributes for each photo by clicking on the red balloon (I did not include the photos since they were quite large), which can change depending on your application, for photographs that I took at the Townsend Recreational Area in the Angelina National Forest this week.

This is a dynamic map – zoom, click and otherwise manipulate it!

This could also aid the efforts of cultural resource managers by allowing them to track fieldwork progress using a single file (when photos are included). In addition to Google Maps, these files can also be opened in Google Earth. To transfer photos from the Nikon Coolpix AW100 to Google Earth, follow the guidance in the .pdf below (from http://www.iwinst.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/nikoncoolpixgeotagging.pdf).

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Having the capacity to include the location and the direction of each digital photograph (along with a wide range of additional attributes) is useful in practice, and can also help to better illustrate progress to clients by emailing them a .kml (Google Maps) or .kmz (Google Earth) file that includes the photographs and various attributes associated with that day (or week’s) work.

For those of us that are a bit more nerdy, the .kmz/.kml files can also be converted to a shapefile for use in GIS (see below), where custom maps can be created to capitalize on each of the various attributes (including hyperlinked photographs). While I did not change the names of the photos (or pull out the various attributes/hyperlinks), I’m sure that you can imagine the possibilities here.

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These new point-and-shoot cameras have a short learning curve and a lot of potential when it comes to archaeological projects (among many others; including those elusive…vacation projects). I have been using this technology for a few years now to map the sand sample collection areas for our petrofacies project, and have had some great results. Since the AW100 is sealed and has no external moving parts, you can also take underwater photographs (or, like me,  just not worry about it getting it wet in the rain or dropping it in the river [note – attach a flotation device to the strap so you don’t lose it!]).

I’ve been very impressed so far with this little camera, and am hoping to get many more years of use out of it. Note – there is a much-upgraded version available currently, and you can view the specs on the Nikon Coolpix AW130 by clicking here.

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