Imagine standing outside a store on Gay Street, and suddenly being transported back in time. This is now possible in a way, thanks to a combination of creativity, technology, and the Chester County Historical Society. It’s called the Digital Exhibition Space (DES), with the West Chester Time Machine, a walking tour. Here’s how it works:
As people stroll through the borough, they can search for QR codes like the one shown on the side. Anyone with a smartphone and a free app known as a QR Code Reader can simply point the phone at the QR code and will be linked to an archived historical photograph that was taken from that location. Simply hold up the photo displayed in the phone against the backdrop of current day West Chester. Presto!
To start, nine locations have been outfitted with the QR codes, which makes for a fun walking tour that covers the center of the business district. Check out the Google Map here. The photographs were chosen by CCHS Librarian Pam Powell after she was approached with the idea by West Chester resident Kyle Hudson.
“People love to walk in West Chester. This offers people the opportunity, with their smart phones, to scan the codes when they find them on businesses downtown. Right where they are standing is where a photographer years ago had positioned their camera to take a picture of that area.”
Kyle Hudson is a radio producer with WCHE 1520 and a video editor, but he has also been tending bar and waiting on tables to save for his upcoming wedding. He was waiting tables when he had his “aha!” moment. “I got the idea working the night shift at Penn’s Table, looking at this old picture they have of Gay Street,” Kyle explained. “I thought wouldn’t it be cool if you could bring the picture outside, stand at the intersection and look at then and now, side by side?” He approached the CCHS with his idea, and volunteered to help with the technical aspects of the project.
Pam was thrilled at the opportunity to take the archived photos out of the library and into the streets. “We’re looking for ways that we can do outreach because not everybody would think about coming to visit the historical society to specifically look at historical photos,” Pam told me. “But if they happen to see one somewhere, I think they would be really interested and engaged by it. This is a way that we can bring the photos out to the public. They can see them in sort of an unexpected kind of way.”
Kyle said he was impressed with the CCHS photo collection. “Pam was able to find pictures for maximum effect, and that’s why this really works,” he said in admiration. “Her knowledge of the photo archive was amazing, after I described what I was going for, she brought out these pictures by Horace Engle, just some candid, man on the street pictures… from 1886! CCHS has some amazing resources and hopefully this turns some people on to the cool stuff they have.”
Look for the CCHS QR Codes on the windows of the following businesses:
- Chester County Historical Society
- Jane Chalfant
- Kreutz Creek Vineyards
- Susquehanna Bank
- Senator Dinniman’s Office
- Test Subject
- Penn’s Table
- WCHE 1520AM
- Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant
Click here to explore the full CCHS QR Code Walking Tour via Google Maps.
A big “thank you” goes out to local Randy Schmidt for helping us stage a photograph of the West Chester Time Machine in action (as seen in the first photo of this article).
One Comment