“Transatlantic Digital Victorians” is an exciting collaborative student/faculty research project between the University of Huddersfield and Huron University College in Ontario, Canada. The project demonstrates how digital history can build bridges between local history and the wider world, as well as help create undergraduate research links between our universities. It was designed for students to add to their research skills, to learn to present their research digitally, and practice the public history skills integral to the 21st century Historian’s Craft.
Our two classes (on Digital Victorians at Huddersfield and The Historian’s Craft at Huron) worked together in parallel, choosing objects from our local community partners, and creating digital exhibits that explore the local and transatlantic history of the objects and their importance to our wider research communities.
Huddersfield students worked with Skelmanthorpe Textile Heritage Centre and the Huron students worked with Eldon House in London.
Skelmanthorpe Textile Heritage centre is located at 6 Queen Street, Skelmanthorpe. It is a ‘one up, one down’ former weaver’s cottage. The downstairs is maintained as family living quarters as they would have been in about 1900.
Eldon House is an historic site in downtown London that has been preserved and maintained since 1960 when it was donated to the City. It was home to four generations of the Harris family.
Students chose objects from the museums to exemplify one or more of the following:
The Huddersfield students also made use of a 3D scanner to create scans of their objects, but this resulted in the creation of some interesting art pieces rather than authentic historical reproductions.
The outcomes of the collaboration can be viewed at:
and
http://www.huronresearch.ca/history/transatlantic-digital-victorians-virtual-exhibits/
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