Category: Final project

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Stage 6 – Peer Review by Payton Mlakar of “The Growth of California During the Gold Rush” by Isabel Blackford

This project details the population growth in California that resulted from the California Gold Rush in the mid-to-late 1800s. The project begins by exploring two case studies of mining towns established during the California Gold Rush, contrasting the different fates of Nevada City and Bodie. The project then explores population growth and contraction before, during, and after the gold rush. In its final section, the project describes Chinese migration, settlement, and discrimination in California during and after the gold rush. The crux of this project’s argument is that the California Gold Rush transformed California from a sparsely-populated, rural region, to a state full of bustling metropolises and thriving industry. This growth was sustained by California’s connection to the East Coast via the Trans-Continental Railroad which Chinese immigrants built while facing constant discrimination.

The greatest strength of this project’s maps are their readability. Each map in this project has superb color contrast, color gradients, and easy-to-see vector features. Their readability makes these maps easy-to-use and appealing to the reader. Anywhere they were included in the project they added to my understanding of the project’s themes and supported the project’s historical argument. One map I found particularly useful and informative was the “Heat map of Gold Rush settlements.” This map helped me visualize where gold rush settlements were and how the epicenter of the gold rush coincided with areas with the greatest population growth and contraction.

One facet of this project that could be improved is using GIS maps in the sections on Nevada City and Bodie to highlight where these two mining towns were in relation to other mining settlements in California. Contrasting the stories of Nevada City and Bodie is a superb part of this project that does a great job of introducing readers to the California Gold Rush. However, these two case studies could benefit from having their own respective maps that highlight where these two towns are located in California. These maps could even include popups that could provide population graphs and other helpful information. Another improvement that could make the maps in this project even more readable would be to include a legend on them, particularly the choropleths. Including a legend on these maps would ensure the reader understands each map and its argument accurately.

Overall, this was an excellent and informative project that clearly drew on class instruction on mapping conventions, best practices, and GIS methods.

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Stage 6

  1. Levi’s map argues that the Great Migration impacted Denver’s North Point Neighborhood by the number of Black people that increasingly moved into the neighborhood. Levi shows census data that shows the increasing number of Black people within Denver’s North Point and also new buildings such as a YMCA.
  2. I really liked how thorough the data was that they collected for their map. The number of maps included also really adds to the argument. There are a multiple number of maps throughout the storymap that add to the story and they’re all super well done. All of the maps are really organized.
  3. I think for Levi’s storymap I would have considered writing more text. This could just be because I love to talk and tell stories, but I think that element could have been used a bit more, especially to add on to the story of the maps. I wish there was more background on the Great Migration and specifically how segregation spread throughout Colorado. I feel as if the HOLC is briefly touched on, but I wish I knew more about how it was Colorado and Four Points specific. I also wished there was more about the culture of the neighborhood, knowing that famous jazz musicians were from the neighborhood. I think all of the claims are fully supported, however, and that is done very well with maps to back them up.
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Stage 6 – Declan Dunham to Emma Reed

Overall, I think your project was excellent! The German refugee crisis is still an ongoing issue today. I believe you did a good job explaining the causes of this crisis, as well as, the effects of this crisis. However, there is a clear topic for this project, but not a clear thesis. You state that you are examining the refugee crisis and its relationship with the unemployment rate. What about the relationship? Here, I do not see a clear argument. 

It was very helpful to give the audience an understanding of this crisis. Your timeline was excellent and provided very important background information. Your first map offers a great insight into the exact amount of refugees coming into Europe. It is also a great way of showing exactly how many more refugees are coming into Germany. 

In your unemployment section, you did a good job of explaining the unemployment rate in Germany. The map you used to show the relationship between the foreign-born population and the unemployment rate worked very well. As the reader, you can clearly see the correlation between the two. 

As this is a History class, it would have been advantageous if you added a Historiography section to your project. This would allow me to see what perspective you are researching this from. It would also allow me to see any of the biases you may have implemented. 

Again, I thought this project was very thought-provoking as it would allow for the continued discourse on this topic. 

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