This is an answer to a poster about his loving TransDEM and the difficulty he was having finding historical details.
from: http://forums.auran.com/trainz/showthread.php?101129-Master-Map-maker-needed/page4
from: http://forums.auran.com/trainz/showthread.php?101129-Master-Map-maker-needed/page4
Hope this helps someone!
- If you're having trouble with the geo-data, confer with Steamboateng (next post after) who seems to be particular good with rooting the right stuff from the USGS databases.
- If historical, you might consider 'letting your fingers do the walking' by contacting the various local towns reference librarian desks and asking what they have on the local history in paper archives that is not digitized and on line.
- There's likely to be a lot in any place with a bit of local pride. We're just about 20 years now into the internet.
- Ask also about any local historical societies they know about, either town or county, and about where you might find images...
- Following up with a short pleasant phone call after you have a person's name will go a long way toward getting some engaged, helpful allies, not brusk assistance.
- If the area were central to my layout and close enough to make into a research trip, a personal visit would be much much preferred, and on a daytrip like that, you could line up several locales to data mine on the same day.
- Put that idea together with an 'arranged appointment' with your new made ally above, and likely the reference person will have stuff pulled for you to just grab and sit down with when you arrive.
- Flowers... when it can't hurt, even if it's just a lovely picture in a thank you email off the many gorgeous pics on the Wikimedia commons. (browse: Category:Flowers)
- Don't forget the Public Domain Trains collection either: (here: Category:Trains) Finding how the area is categorized in Wikipedia (down at all page's bottoms), will likely lead to a category or series of categories of images in the region on the Wikimedia Commons. (example of one in (4-2) section follows)
- For example consider Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, which our Yesterdayz Trainz group is thinking on as one big yard anchor for a route. In 30-40 seconds I found:
- Loads of historical background, including links and reference I can further mine:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harrisburg,_Pennsylvania- Near the bottom is always External Links, just click on the Table of contents and skip most of the article, to find pics this way. This kind of section gives the links (Note the box on your right margin) to other Wikimedia projects about Harrisburg, and the one Media, is the Wikimedia Commons and so Pics...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harrisburg,_Pennsylvania#External_links- Not the best populated category, but see the category 'parent' link(s) down the page bottom, and note the upper left corner notice the page was a redirected connection... click on and follow back the parent category to a more general look:
from... http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Harrisburg by the bottom category...
Category:Harrisburg,_Pennsylvania- Ahh, this might have some kit bash possibilities... Railroads use bridges don't they?
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Bridges_in_Harrisburg- Despite it's ruined state now, or it's transition to a pedestrian bridge as I believe I suspect from another thumb... This is certainly a good start on a Blender run for an earlier period setting:
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Walnut_street_br1.jpg- Thirty-forty seconds, guys. Wiki categories are a secret road to some treasure mines. (The large image is 1.78 Meg, and overwhelmed this blogs 97kbyte limit-Click the link and copy yourself!)
- There's likely to be lots of snaps of public buildings, town squares and all that if you root around.
- Clicking directly on a Wikipedia image in an article will lead you to the source picture in large and possibly even larger expanded details.
- One's hosted on Wikipedia Categories are not fully internationally free of copyright entanglements, but we don't care. It's just one reason they might permanently be on the 'pedia instead of the Media center.
- Clicking again on the info page when the pics expand will take you to the commons source image, and so to the commons categories cross-linking other goodies.
- Just poke around and follow a few chains of links... you'll have fun and figure it out in no time. There is some neat images up there. Thank you Florida for holding up Wikimedia's servers!
- Wikipedia's See also and External links and References sections on page bottoms of such town articles would be a good way to find other leads...
- Don't skip counties and such. There is a heirarchy, especially down at the category end in page bottoms, that lead places you want to go.
- Municipal links were pretty common thereon last time I read that sort of article.
- Get to the right Official town site, and there'll be a cross link to the libraries.
- articles will mention and list historical museums and societies more often than not. Likely have those in the External links, or in the reference footnotes or both...
- Tourism and travel businesses could give some good area leads and an occasional gem. Thus, the chambers of commerce sites there would be a good place to visit. An email to a upscale motel or two asking about local historical places and locales... just say you're planning a trip that way in 3-4 months. By the time you haven't made a reservation, they'll have forgotten you never did! <BSEG>
- Oh--almost forgot... Local bookstores, especially Barnes and Nobles chain stores here in the USA have a Local references shelf section. Just yesterday Jcitron and I found a ton-a-bunch of softcover, recently published -- most heavy on period pics and the story by local historians -- collections that had a lot on his Boston and Maine TransDEM project. I think he grabbed 3-4 of those. We took a look at quite a few places in their old period dressing we either know from their look now, and as they looked Then, good stuff. Pricey though... but as noted, this kind of thing is a years long effort.
Frank