BTAA-GIN Collection Stories

By Caroline Kayko What is the item? This item is a geospatial dataset depicting the Border-To-Border (B2B) Trail in Washtenaw County, MI in both shapefile and geodatabase file form. The B2B Trail is a non-motorized trail that stretches across Washtenaw County and connects cities, parks, and other destinations. It is currently still under construction, which is reflected in the dataset. Image of B2B Trail Dataset via Washtenaw County Park Finder What BTAA Library submitted the item? University of Michigan Interesting tidbits: The trail length will total 70 miles upon completion It spans 35 miles along the Huron River Greenway, connecting Ann Arbor, Dexter, and Ypsilanti Conservation of the Huron River corridor is one of the project goals The trail is intentionally routed away from roads to create an ‘urban wilderness Snapshot of B2B Trail Segments in Ypsilanti Map from Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation Commission (via City of Ypsilanti) Where can I find out more? Border-To-Border T...

By Cecilia Smith This interview is part of our Data Provider Series, which highlights local governments and institutions that offer open GIS data. In each interview, providers tell us about their missions and data resources. We hope this will be a great way for readers to learn more about local GIS developments and new initiatives.            “Cookie County” a cookie cutter made by the      Cook County GIS Department staff for GIS Day 2019. Interviewee Name: Todd Schuble Title: GIS Manager Division/Department: Cook County Bureau of Technology, GIS Department Website: https://www.cookcountyil.gov/agency/geographic-information-systems-gis-0 Can you describe how GIS is deployed organizationally by Cook County Government? Which units are involved and what is your mission? The Cook County Bureau of Technology’s GIS Department (BOT/GIS) falls under the jurisdiction of the Cook County President’s Office. All other bureaus and departments that report...

By Kathleen Weessies The BTAA Geoportal brings together datasets from different sources. This can be helpful when you’re looking for data gathered by multiple government units. Trails are a perfect example: The state government and a local government will be paying attention to the trails under its own care. The joggler or unicyclist, however, only wants maintained surfaces away from motor vehicles. This map shows the trail dataset available from the State of Michigan (gray dashed line) and the trail dataset from Allegan County (orange dashed line). We can readily see that each entity has features that the other doesn’t. The attribute information can also vary, depending on what the unit of government prioritized in the data gathering process. In this case, Allegan County tagged each trail by its corridor type. This allows us to separate out and highlight trails that were built on abandoned railroads (green dashed lines). The State of Michigan dataset doesn’t provide this detail. This ...

By Caroline Kayko and Nicole Scholtz posted: Mar 10, 2021Interviewers: Caroline Kayko and Nicole Scholtz This interview is part of our Data Provider Series, which highlights local governments and institutions that offer open GIS data. In each interview, providers tell us about their missions and data resources. We hope this will be a great way for readers to learn more about local GIS developments and new initiatives. The Matthaei Botanical Gardens & Nichols Arboretum (MBGNA) is one organization with two locations at the University of Michigan. The locations feature gardens, trails, exhibits, a conservatory and more. MBGNA also creates many geospatial datasets that map their resources. The datasets are published on an ArcGIS Hub site here . Featured Story Maps on MBGNA ArcGIS Hub Conservatory Paths at the Matthaei Botanical Gardens Interviewee Name: Maricela Avalos Title: Data & GIS Specialist Division/Department: Matthaei Botanical Gardens & Nichols Arboretum, University ...

By Laura McElfresh Featured Item: Booklovers' map of the British Isles What is the item? This map, created by Paul M. Paine in 1927, shows literary landmarks throughout the British Isles, with magnified inset maps of London and Edinburgh. It includes places where significant events -- both real and fictional -- happened, plus birthplaces and homes of prominent authors. Some places on the map are shown as little pictures, like Sherwood Forest and the Globe Theatre. What BTAA Library submitted the item? Pennsylvania State University “ How small the map of Britain is on paper and yet how packed with fancies .” Ideas to explore: This map is from 1927. If you were updating it today, who and what else would you include? What other geographic places might make interesting maps for readers? Where can I find out more? More maps of literary landmarks are available online from the Library of Congress . The Penn State Libraries (and many other libraries) also have maps like these available on...