NEWSRELEASE: Self-walking Guide of Carlisle Features Student Art
Carlisle, PA (issued 13 August): The Cumberland County Historical Society is pleased to announce its newest publication, Walking Guide to Historic Carlisle, PA. Over seventy sites divided into four different tours are described
in the booklet with two maps, an introductory background to Carlisle’s 250 year history, and thirty-two illustrations by art students at the Carlisle High School.
Responding to an increasing number
of requests for a walking guide booklet and brief history of Carlisle from
both visitors and residents, the project began last summer for release during
Carlisle’s 250th anniversary year. “To celebrate the county seat’s anniversary, the Society wanted the booklet to accomplish many things- from accurate content and a user-friendly format to an affordable price and a personality all its own, ” comments Barbara Bartos, Project Coordinator for the project. “Many people contributed: readers, content reviewers and contributors, Carlisle students, to mention a few. I think visitors and residents will be pleased with the results.”
Content
Highlighting 250 years of Carlisle history, the forty-page, soft-covered booklet shares people, places, and events that have shaped the community. The Welcome Page and Historical Background introduce Carlisle as a crossroads location due to the natural transportation corridor of the Cumberland Valley formed 1000s of years ago by glaciers. The theme continues throughout the booklet with examples of military, economic,educational, religious, cultural, and political happenings, as well as presenting the diversity of people who lived or visited the Carlisle area. Site selections were chosen to compliment the people, events, and architectural goals of the tour. “As a popular history and overview, the number of sites had to be limited and we wanted to include some history from the 1900s, like the Market House Court Case. The booklet contains as many sites and history as it does because of the generosity of the underwriters, Dutrey’s Shoes and Tudor Room and Robin E. Rowe.”
Tour Choices
Sites are divided into four tours to accommodate people’s different time needs. The entire self-guided tour takes about three to four hours. But explains Bartos, “One can do just The Square Tour, which takes about an hour. One should always start with The Square Tour, but the west side of town tour or the east side of town tour can be added, or they can be done separately. A small tour of the Old Graveyard is also included.” As another alternative, selected sites are circled on the main map and in the text as major stops not to be missed.
Student Art
Illustrations, cover and layout design, and the maps and grids were contributed by students in the Carlisle High School’s Art Department under the direction of Melissa Gallagher, Art Program Chair, and Melisa Singer, Art Teacher. “This was a wonderful partnership,” observes Bartos. “ The students had the opportunity to submit work for publication and the booklet gained a special, one-of-a-kind look that not only provided visuals for the booklet, but shares how talented young people are.” Participating students were: Marisa Beard, Kelly Clinton, Natalie Coulson, Phil George, Alexis Hair, Tiffany Landis, Ryan Nickel, Katy Sjoberg, Dana Wagner, Jessia Cecco, Steve Clute, Tasha Darr, Vicki Girton, Shadia Ibrahim, Meghan McPherson, Sarah Phillips, Summer Stoneberger, Heather Weidner, Stephanie Cerami, Ember Coleman, Becky Dye, Holly Gish, Erin Klock, Viet Nguyen, Andy Price, and Delina Zook. Chad Jackson and Josh Sheller worked on the cover and layout design, as well as the maps and grids. Their work was in partial fulfillment for their coursework in Commercial Art and Portfolio classes.
User Friendly
Numerous self-walking guide books from other towns were looked at and some taken to decide various features for the Carlisle booklet. “We looked at such things as a comfortable handling size, print size, and what map symbols should be included - such as benches and telephones – information that would make a self-walking tour enjoyable and not a hassle. The inner flap is user-friendly with a lot of tour information and also functions as a bookmark,” remarks Bartos. Walking directions were tested by at least ten different walkers; including those unfamiliar with the area and older people. “The price is user-friendly at $5.18 plus tax.”
Walking Guide to Historic Carlisle,
PA is available at the Cumberland County Historical Society during public hours: Monday 3 p.m. – 9 p.m., Tuesday – Friday 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., and Saturday 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. The Historical Society is located at 21 N. Pitt St., Carlisle. For additional information call 249-7610 or visit www.historicalsociety.com.