WESTERN HISTORIC
TRAILS CENTER
National Park Service
Council Bluffs, Iowa

This visitor center is located at the gathering and jumping off point for the largest overland migration in history. The stories are told from the points of view of the Euro-Americans, many of whom kept extensive diaries, and from the points of view of the American Indians, whose lives were indelibly changed by this westward expansion.

The interpretive design of this project was completed in conjunction with the siting and design of the building. The result is that the building placement and forms support both the interpretive messages and easy visitor access and flow.

The lobby is the hub of visitor circulation, providing access to the theater, the exhibits, walking trails, the gift shop, restrooms and staff offices. The lobby has a clear interpretive function as it is oriented so visitors enter it from east to west.

Visitors with limited time can gather information using this interactive map adjacent to the lobby. It provides basic information identifying the trails west. Visitors can then get a complementary “triptyque” map from the nearby gift shop and be on their way.

Emigrants west kept detailed diaries of their experiences. Excerpts from these diaries have been transcribed and narrated for audio wands so visitors gain a realistic experience of the trek. Native American oral traditions present their perspective on the encounters. All of this is expressed visually by the use of scale folk art vignettes.

This long sweep of materials is organized from east to west in the end curve of the exhibition gallery. Each segment is organized to highlight attractions and their locations in a touch screen video. Above them also arranged in an east to west fashion are a series of contemporary postcards that have been sent to the center by visitors.