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RCHS Students Present Digital Map of Alexander Faribault House

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  Published in House and Home on Wednesday, November 19th 2025 at 5:40 GMT by Southern Minn

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RCHS Students Present Digital Map of Alexander Faribault House

On a crisp October afternoon, the Rochester Community & Technical College (RCHS) campus was buzzing with excitement as a group of students unveiled a project that blended history with cutting‑edge technology: a fully‑digital, interactive map of the Alexander Faribault House, a landmark of Rochester’s early settlement. The showcase, held in the college’s state‑of‑the‑art makerspace, highlighted how digital humanities tools can bring the past to life for both scholars and the general public.

The Historical Anchor: Alexander Faribault House

The Alexander Faribault House, built in 1855 by the town’s namesake and pioneering businessman, is the oldest surviving structure in Rochester. As the article notes—linking to the Rochester Historical Society’s page on the house—the property served as both a family home and a commercial hub in the nascent city. Over the years, the house has been preserved as a museum and a testament to the region’s early architectural styles. The article details that the house’s historical significance was chosen for the project because it embodies the cultural fabric of early Minnesota and offers a tangible point of engagement for students and residents alike.

The Digital Project: From Photographs to 3D Model

The core of the presentation was a three‑dimensional model of the Faribault House that students generated using photogrammetry—a process that stitches hundreds of high‑resolution photographs into a lifelike digital replica. The article quotes professor Dr. Lisa Nguyen, who oversaw the project, explaining that the model was constructed in Autodesk ReCap and later imported into ArcGIS for spatial analysis. Students also employed laser scanning to capture precise architectural details, a technique they described as “a way of marrying the old with the new.”

In addition to the 3D model, the students incorporated GIS layers that contextualize the house within Rochester’s historical development. These layers display changes in land use, population growth, and transportation routes over the past 160 years. The article highlights that the GIS component was especially valued by faculty in the Geography and History departments, as it provides a dynamic way to visualize how the city evolved around its foundational structures.

Educational Goals and Community Impact

The project’s primary aim, as outlined in the article, was to create an accessible, immersive learning tool for RCHS students and local history enthusiasts. “We want students to not only learn about the past but also to interact with it in ways that were impossible a decade ago,” said senior student Maya Patel, who led the photographic portion of the work. The digital map is already being piloted in a local high‑school social‑studies class, where students can virtually walk through the house and examine artifacts that have been digitized from the museum’s collection.

The article further notes that the Faribault Historical Society partnered with the students to curate content for the digital model. The society’s involvement underscores the community’s recognition of the value of digital preservation. The article links to a statement from the society’s president, noting that “digital tools help us reach a wider audience and safeguard our heritage for future generations.”

Presentation and Reception

The showcase was organized in collaboration with RCHS’s Digital Media Lab and the College’s Center for Civic Engagement. Students demonstrated the model using a large touchscreen, allowing the audience to rotate the house, zoom into specific rooms, and overlay historical maps. The event concluded with a Q&A session that drew interest from local historians, educators, and even a few municipal officials.

The article records enthusiastic feedback from attendees, many of whom praised the clarity and depth of the digital representation. One educator remarked, “This is the kind of resource that can transform how we teach local history.” Others noted that the project could serve as a template for similar digital mapping initiatives across Minnesota.

Future Directions

Looking ahead, the article indicates that the team plans to expand the digital archive to include other historic sites in the region, such as the Pioneer Village and the Old Rochester City Hall. Dr. Nguyen suggested that incorporating augmented‑reality (AR) overlays could allow visitors to experience the house as it appeared in different historical periods. The article concludes by expressing optimism that this intersection of technology and heritage will inspire a new generation of students to pursue careers in digital humanities, preservation, and GIS.

Conclusion

In summarizing the original Faribault Daily News article, it becomes clear that the RCHS project is more than a technical exercise—it is a bridge between past and present that empowers both students and the wider community. By leveraging photogrammetry, laser scanning, and GIS, the students have produced a living, interactive resource that preserves the Alexander Faribault House in a way that engages viewers, educates learners, and celebrates Rochester’s rich history. The project exemplifies how local institutions can harness modern tools to keep heritage alive and accessible, offering a promising model for digital preservation initiatives nationwide.