Fort Laramie National Historic Site, USA

In 2009, Wyoming’s Fort Laramie was the subject of a digital preservation pilot project between the National Park Service, CyArk, and the University of Colorado, Denver. The documentation of Fort Laramie focused on the four remaining buildings of Officer’s Row (Old Bedlam, Post Trader’s Complex, Post Surgeon’s Quarters, Lt. Colonel’s Quarters), the adjacent Parade Ground, and the ruins of the Post Hospital. The team used laser scanners and photography to capture the interior and exterior of the buildings as well as the surrounding grounds for context. The project produced highly accurate 3D data to aid in the ongoing conservation and restoration work of the fort. Additional 3D reconstructions, animations, and other multimedia were generated to supplement existing educational and interpretive media.

In 1938, Franklin Roosevelt declared Fort Laramie a National Monument and placed it under the protective stewardship of the National Park Service. As part of the effort to restore the site, the National Park Service documented the conditions of the extant buildings under the Historic American Building Survey Program (HABS). Designated a National Historic Site in 1960, Fort Laramie has undergone much restoration. Currently, there are eleven restored and refurbished structures mostly revived from the 1873 to 1890 Army Period. The ongoing restoration effort relies on the documentation from HABS and new documentation technologies to further preserve one of America’s most important historic sites.