Redlining Richmond, https://dsl.richmond.edu/holc/pages/home. Created by the Digital Scholarship Lab in collaboration with the University of Richmond in Virginia. https://dsl.richmond.edu/holc/pages/about . Reviewed Jan 31 – Feb. 8, 2019.
The Digital Scholarship Lab develops digital humanities projects that contribute to research and teaching at the University of Richmond and beyond (http://dsl.richmond.edu/). Redlining Richmond extends this mission by creating an interpretation of race and politics through maps in Richmond, Virginia. The project draws from and focuses on the assessment surveys and maps produced by the Home Owners Loan Corporation (HOLC) and local agents allowing visitors to explore this information.
Redlining Richmond has five different tabs to look through (Home, Introduction, Neighborhoods, Factors, and About) that states a project summary, contextualization of the history from the time period the project focuses on, the different neighborhoods, and the arguable factors that contributed to the redlining of the neighborhoods. The map on the home page shows neighborhoods divided into four different grades based on “residential security.” “Neighborhood” grades are categorized by the colors: Green (A), Blue (B), Yellow (C) and Red (D). “Neighborhood,” “Factors,” and the maps on the home page contain interactive links. These links provide detailed information about each neighborhood and the different factors that attributed to the redlining. The “Factors” tab looks at the different individual factors (Terrain, Favorable Influences, Detrimental Influences, the different inhabitants, Buildings Occupancy, Sales Demand, Rental, demand, New construction, Availability for mortgage funds, and Trends of desirability next 10-15 years, Clarifying Remarks and Information for this form was obtained from) that the HOLC collected data for their assessment for each area.
The information on the site is communicated clearly, however specific terms can be difficult to understand if one is not coming from a background of race studies or geographic information systems. It is not exactly clear whom the target audience is, but I believe it could be for those who are familiar with the terms and ideas that are used and for people to look at as another case study for race, politics, and redlining. The home tab has an interactive map and links embedded in the text to provide and clarify what the project is interpreting. Under the neighborhood tabs there are two mini tabs, Map and List. Under maps the image of the map is not there. There are instructions to “Click on any marker to view report data for the neighborhood,” however there is nothing to click on. The collections of the area descriptions are very clear quality and help add even more nuance to what the project offers.
The actual site is fairly easy to navigate with the different tabs and internal links that are provided. When first clicking on the link to visit the page, it takes you to the home tab. The website is not accessible to those with disabilities, which there is no sound to read the text aloud nor color-blind-friendly colors used on the amp to distinguish the different grades of neighborhoods. The site seems to be compatible with tablets and mobile-friendly, however requires manipulation of the site such as zooming in.
Six people created this project. Robert K. Nelson, director of the Digital Scholar Lab, wrote the introduction, programmed the site and led to the overall development of the project. Kathleen Smith, a research intern at the Digital scholarship lap, helped conceptualize the project and the site and developed the project’s database. Scott Nesbit, association director of the Digital Scholarship Lab, contributed to GIS expertise. Nate Ayers, programmer and analyst the Digital Scholarship Lab, designed the site and all of its images. John V. Moeser, a senior fellow at the Bonner Center for Civic Engagement, brought the HOLC assessment surveys and security maps of Richmond to the attention of the DSL and contributed to his expertise in the twentieth-century history of Richmond. Mike Saraham, a graduate student of Moeser, visited the National Archives to gather surveys and maps for Richmond.
Although the format of the site is not a unique design and seemingly basic, it offers a nuanced point of view on the topic of assessment surveys and residential security and how politics and race interact with these things in Richmond, Virginia. I believe there could be a more unique and appealing design and also more interaction with the maps. Looking at different platforms such as Story Maps or interactive layers would benefit the project and add more to the interaction with the audience.
S. Shine Trabucco
St. Mary’s University
San Antonio, Texas
