Historic Saint Paul

Saint Paul, Minnesota may not be the oldest city in the United States, but its colorful past and stunning architecture have sparked the imagination of both historians and writers. In fact, F. Scott Fitzgerald, the author of The Great Gatsby, was born in Saint Paul and wrote a collection of stories based on his home town. Over the years, historic homes and buildings have fallen into disrepair. Some have even been destroyed without a care for their historical significance. Historic Saint Paul is an organization that has dedicated itself to restoring, caring for, and fostering interest in historic neighborhoods in Saint Paul. 

Their website exhibits their preservation of Saint Paul neighborhoods and also provides some archival information about historic buildings, although they do not do this in a standard way. Rather than compile and keep the archives on their website, Historic Saint Paul invites their audience—those either living in Saint Paul or those interested in preserving or learning about the history of Saint Paul's neighborhoods—to participate in researching houses and updating a Wiki with information about specific properties. Historic Saint Paul provides resources via hypertextuality so that their audience is able to do this in a scholarly way.

While they provide other resources such as context studies, maps, walking tours, and historical information, Historic Saint Paul's main purpose is to raise awareness about the restoration projects and community building activities that they host. They have a secondary website called Saint Paul Historical that focuses on the history of the area. 

In this way, the Historic Saint Paul website is more of a hub that collects primary resources on Saint Paul neighborhoods than a digital project that interacts with the history itself. Their focus is on preserving the physical history so that others can interpret it. What little scholarship they do have on their main site, however, is up to date and reliable. 

Historic Saint Paul's website is well-organized and easy to use, though the historical information is somewhat difficult to find. On their main page, the website has six tabs and a search bar that allows the reader to discover for him or herself what the organization does and what services they offer. In order to get to the historical information, readers must click on the tab "Our Work" and scroll down and click on "Cultural Heritage" before finding the link to the Saint Paul Historical website and individual pages about the history of specific neighborhoods. Someone looking for this information has to go on a scavenger hunt through the website to find the history. On the other hand, it is very easy to find information about Historic Saint Paul's preservation and restoration work. 

Without their website, Historic Saint Paul would not be able to reach as wide an audience as it does, for only a niche audience reads books or watches movies about the preservation of historic houses. By maintaining a website, Historic Saint Paul ensures that those who are interested in Saint Paul's neighborhoods and buildings will stay up to date with their activities. They also provide access to resources that may not be readily available elsewhere for historians or curious homeowners. Additionally, they invite their audience to participate in scholarship with them by providing them with the tools to research Saint Paul houses themselves.

Overall, Historic Saint Paul is an effective website that serves its purpose well. Its historical information could be easier to find, but the overall design of their site is simple and not overcrowded with graphics, advertisements, or irrelevant information. Through exploring this website, one is sure to find man hidden treasures to capture the imagination.

Historic Saint Paul, https://www.historicsaintpaul.org/about-us. Created and maintained by Historic Saint Paul, Saint Paul, Minnesota. Reviewed September 13, 2018.

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