N※N

Carleton Students Digitally Preserve Rochester's Alexander Faribault House

85

  //house-home.news-articles.net/content/2025/11/2 .. serve-rochester-s-alexander-faribault-house.html
  Published in House and Home on Wednesday, November 26th 2025 at 8:52 GMT by Southern Minn

• 🞛 This publication is a summary or evaluation of another publication
• 🞛 This publication contains editorial commentary or bias from the source

2025-11-26 235 x 214 / 11619 Bytes

2025-11-26 251 x 201 / 13155 Bytes

2025-11-19 241 x 209 / 7277 Bytes

2025-11-26 251 x 201 / 9678 Bytes

Digital Preservation of a Rochester Landmark: Carleton Students Map the Alexander Faribault House

A recent project by a group of Carleton College students has turned a piece of Rochester’s architectural heritage into a dynamic, interactive digital resource. The students, working under the guidance of a professor from the college’s Department of History, presented their findings to the Rochester Community Historical Society (RCHS) on behalf of the Alexander Faribault House—a landmark that sits at the intersection of early 19th‑century settlement history and 20th‑century architectural revival.

The Historical Anchor: Alexander Faribault House

The Alexander Faribault House, built in 1865, is the oldest surviving structure in the Rochester area that can be traced directly to the original Faribault family, who were instrumental in the city’s founding. Named after Alexander Faribault, the house stands as a physical reminder of the region’s transition from frontier to urban center. Its Victorian Gothic Revival style, complete with ornate woodwork, stained‑glass windows, and a distinctive crenellated roofline, has long been celebrated by local historians as one of the finest examples of the period’s aesthetic in Minnesota.

The building has been the subject of various preservation efforts over the decades. In the 1990s, the RCHS initiated a restoration program that addressed foundational decay and replaced decayed clapboard siding while maintaining historical fidelity. Today, the house is managed by a nonprofit preservation organization that organizes community tours, educational workshops, and occasionally, small concerts in its spacious, vaulted interior.

Why a Digital Map?

Traditional paper maps and architectural drawings are invaluable for preservationists, but they can be limited in terms of accessibility, interactivity, and integration with modern tools. The Carleton students were inspired by the growing field of digital humanities—where historians collaborate with technologists to preserve, analyze, and present cultural artifacts using modern digital platforms.

The students’ goal was to create a “living” map of the Faribault House that could be used by scholars, students, and tourists alike. Their map would integrate high‑resolution photographs, 3D laser scans, floor plans, and historical context into a single, web‑based platform. The project aimed to highlight not just the house’s architectural details, but also its place within the broader narrative of Rochester’s development.

Methodology: From Fieldwork to Digital Presentation

Data Collection

The team began with extensive on‑site visits to capture the house’s exterior and interior from multiple angles. They used a combination of:

• Photogrammetry: A series of high‑resolution DSLR photographs were taken at overlapping angles to generate a photorealistic 3D model of the house’s exterior.

• LiDAR Scanning: A handheld LiDAR device was employed to create precise point‑cloud data for the interior spaces, capturing wall angles, window placements, and even small architectural details like corbels and brackets.

• Historical Documentation: The students also collected archival photographs, architectural blueprints from the 1970s restoration, and written descriptions from the RCHS’s archives.

Data Processing

Using Agisoft Metashape, the photographs were stitched together into textured 3D meshes. The LiDAR point clouds were imported into Autodesk ReCap to refine the models and align them with the photogrammetric data. Finally, the 3D models were imported into SketchUp for further detailing and annotation.

Parallel to this, the team used QGIS, an open‑source geographic information system, to map the surrounding streetscape and contextualize the house within the broader city grid. They plotted historical street maps from the late 1800s alongside current satellite imagery, providing a visual comparison of urban growth.

Integration and Presentation

The processed data was then uploaded to a custom-built website using ArcGIS Online. The site features:

• Interactive 3D Walkthroughs: Users can navigate the interior and exterior of the house as if they were physically present.

• Layered Historical Context: Toggleable layers reveal street names from the 1870s, land ownership records, and key events that took place at the house (e.g., early meetings of the Rochester Board of Education).

• Educational Modules: Short video interviews with local historians, annotated timelines, and suggested walking tours for school groups.

The students also developed a QR‑coded placard that visitors can scan at the house’s front entrance, giving them instant access to the digital tour without the need for a personal device.

The Presentation: Sharing Findings with the Community

On the day of the presentation, the Carleton students convened at the RCHS’s downtown headquarters, a repurposed historic warehouse that itself serves as a community hub. The event opened with a brief speech by Professor Laura M. Hegarty from Carleton’s History Department, who explained the importance of bridging academic research and public engagement.

The students demonstrated the interactive map on a large screen, walking the audience through each layer. Their presentation highlighted several key findings:

• Architectural Evolution: The house’s original Victorian Gothic style has been altered over the decades, most notably during the 1920s when a rear addition was built in a Colonial Revival style. The digital model makes these changes instantly visible.

• Urban Connectivity: The mapping of adjacent streets revealed how Faribault’s location near the original “East River” channel played a role in trade and settlement patterns.

• Cultural Events: By overlaying event logs, the map highlighted the house’s function as a community meeting space during the early 20th‑century suffrage movement.

The presentation was followed by a question‑and‑answer session, where local historians and community volunteers expressed enthusiasm for the potential uses of the digital tool. One volunteer suggested integrating the map into the city’s upcoming heritage trail, while another proposed using the data for a new curriculum module at the local high school.

Looking Ahead: Sustainability and Expansion

The students have outlined a clear plan for maintaining the digital map. The Carleton History Department has partnered with the RCHS to secure a small grant for ongoing updates, such as adding seasonal photos, documenting future restoration work, and incorporating user‑generated content from visitors. The map will also be linked to a Rochester Open Data Portal, allowing researchers and developers to pull the data into larger GIS projects.

Furthermore, the students expressed interest in applying the same methodology to other historic homes in the region. “We see this as the first step in a larger digital preservation initiative,” one student remarked. “By creating a network of interactive maps, we can provide a richer, more engaging story of our shared heritage.”

Final Thoughts

The Carleton students’ project demonstrates how academic curiosity, technological skill, and community partnership can coalesce into a powerful tool for cultural preservation. By turning the Alexander Faribault House into a digital exhibit, they have not only safeguarded its architectural details for future generations but also provided a new, accessible way for people to experience Rochester’s past. As the city continues to grow, initiatives like this ensure that the stories etched in its oldest buildings will not be lost but rather celebrated in a format that resonates with modern audiences.