For this lab, I created a web map that visualizes five locations on Carleton’s campus that are most relevant to my daily life as a student which include my dorm Burton, where I lift at Laird stadium, and where most of my softball takes place which is the recreation center and the softball field. I entered each location into a Google Sheet using the provided campus locations template, recording the building name, function/type, address, and geographic coordinates gathered from Google Maps. Once complete, I exported the spreadsheet as a CSV file for use in ArcGIS Online.
After uploading the CSV to ArcGIS Online, I selected the base map imagery because I like how it shows a visual of nature combined with outline of architecture. Imagery clearly shows campus pathways and surrounding context without overwhelming the data. I customized the symbology so that different types of locations are visually distinct, making patterns in my campus routine easier to see at a glance. I also added labels to identify each building. To add spatial depth, I created a polygon feature layer and traced the footprints of each building, adjusting the symbology so the outlines complemented the point data rather than distracting from it.
This process helped me think critically about how design choices such as basemap selection, symbol size, and labeling affect how users interpret spatial information. Even with a small dataset, web mapping offers powerful tools for storytelling, especially in Digital Humanities work where place and context matter.
Personally, I struggled a little bit with creating the polygons and after comparing with my classmates, mine did come out a little different. I enjoyed the overall process of finding the address of certain areas, the coordinates, and customizing the map. Overall, this lab demonstrated the potential of web mapping as both an analytical and communicative tool. By linking personal experience to geographic data, the map becomes more than a visualization. It becomes a narrative of how I move through and experience campus space.