Mapping Greek History: Survey123 and Crowdsourced Mapping in the History Classroom

In the Spring 2020 semester, students in a Greek history course at the University of Minnesota engaged in a collaborative mapping project that visualized the changing geographies of the ancient Greek world. Students used the platform Survey123 for ArcGIS to enter spatial data gathered from secondary research and primary sources, such as Homer's Catalogue of Ships and the Athenian Tribute Lists. These entries produced a series of collective geographic datasets that were presented in a master Esri StoryMap and used for both in-class discussion and the final exam. Students not only produced a compelling class project, but also familiarized themselves with ancient geography, wrestled with the challenges of locating ancient places, and became active participants in the creation of digital course content.