Hidden Town in 3D

This article presents a case of collaborative pedagogy of digital humanities involving a virtual version of historic Salem, North Carolina. “Hidden Town in 3D” is a partnership between Middle Tennessee State University’s Public History, Animation, and Aerospace programs, and Old Salem Museums and Gardens. The object of Hidden Town in 3D is to use digital technologies to recover and represent the stories of the African Americans of Salem. The anticipated outputs for this project are an augmented reality application that can be used on-site at Old Salem, allowing visitors to see slave dwellings where they once stood and a virtual tour using gaming technology of the entire town in the year 1860 with African-American stories and homes reintegrated. Along with enhancing the museum’s visitor experience, these outputs enhance the educational experiences of undergraduate and graduate students through interdisciplinary, project-based learning. Thus, the technical work of modeling, animating, and augmented reality benefits teaching, historical scholarship, and museum offerings.