A new maritime history web search tool invites users to search the Pacific Northwest’s historic ships, lighthouses, maritime museums, and events. After a test search for “schooners,” I found myself falling down an Internet rabbit hole, killing almost an hour reading first about the Zodiac, built for the heirs to the Johnson & Johnson pharmaceuticals fortune, and then about the Bainbridge Island Historical museum, housed in a 1908 schoolhouse.
“The new site will make it easier for patrons of all of Seattle’s maritime heritage ships and museums to discover the other amazing maritime heritage sites around the region, and for those who don’t yet know about our award winning museum to find us,” said Dick Wagner, Founding Director of The Center for Wooden Boats. “This new search tool, created with our fellow maritime museums, historic ships and other maritime sites, will help better inform and educate the public about the Northwest’s maritime history and at the same time use technology to help increase regional tourism.”
Powered by Three Sheets Northwest, the site features a powerful search tool, maps showing the location of heritage sites, and easy-to-browse categories of maritime attractions, organizations and vessels throughout the Northwest. The data in the site was originally collected through a program created by King County’s cultural services agency, 4Culture.