HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — The National Endowment for the Humanities has awarded Marshall University a grant to help further develop an app designed to provide tourists with information about historical and cultural locations.
Clio is an app designed for providing entries on landmarks across
the United States. The program, named after the Greek muse of history, uses location-based service and search features to allow users to learn more about places of interest.
According to a press release, Clio is “on track to have more than six million page views in 2017.”
The NEH awarded $60,000 to Marshall, pending a dollar-to-dollar match raised by the university. The funding will go toward further developing Clio by providing stipends for scholars, wages for students and features like walking tours.
Associate history professor David Trowbridge created the app. He said he wants Clio to be an introduction to an area.
“Ultimately, I want Clio to be as if you were traveling with a team of historians and librarians and locals who would really guide you through their town and let you decide how much you want to learn about everything,” Trowbridge said.
Users are also allowed to submit entries, which are reviewed before going public.
Trowbridge said without the people component, things in locations can go unnoticed.
“I want Clio to make these connections for people, to introduce them to places we know they’d love to go see and give them a little bit of information before they go so they know what questions to ask so they can have that truly authentic experience when they come here,” he said.
The app’s team will also work with the Preservation Alliance of West Virginia, Appalachian Studies Association, West Virginia Division of History and Culture, the Foundation for the Tri-State and the West Virginia Association of Museums in creating services and entries.