By Bill Wilson
How do I get to the shops? Which way to the Guanella Pass Road? Where is the Hamill House? What is the history of the Hotel de Paris? Where do I buy tickets for the Georgetown Loop? The knowledgeable volunteers and staff at the Gateway Visitor Center cheerfully provide the answers to these and many similar questions on a regular basis, using various resources, such as maps, brochures, and even just-plain pointing.
Now more help is on the way. The Town of Georgetown recently received a federal "Preserve America" grant of $33,000, to be matched by an equal amount, for the Georgetown Wayfinding and Marker Project. The objective of this project is to guide the heritage tourist to the outstanding historic sites in Georgetown, and to assist the tourist in understanding and enjoying the history and architecture of these resources.
In the wayfinding component of the project, the Town will install five primary directional signs and 14 secondary directional and location signs. These will lead visitors from the Gateway Visitor Center to the historic downtown, museums, the Georgetown Loop Railroad, and the Guanella Pass Scenic and Historic Byway.
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Finding the way: Signs similar to this one will aid the heritage tourist in finding his way to important historic sites in town. This type of sign is 8’6” x 5’3”, and colors are red, green, and cream. |
Historic Georgetown, Inc. (HGI) is collaborating with the Town in the marker component. HGI proposes to install bronze plaques on 33 historic commercial and civic buildings, primarily in the downtown area. Each marker will be 12 x 18 inches and will contain about 110 words of historical text, abstracted principally from the text of HGI's recently-published walking-tour booklet, "Historic Georgetown, Colorado, Self-Guided Walking and Driving Tours."
The entire project is scheduled to be completed by September, 2007. When it is finished, finding one's way around Georgetown will be easier for the heritage tourist, the visitor should have a greater appreciation for the history and architecture of the town, the town should benefit economically, and workers at the Visitor Center can send tourists on their way with greater confidence that they won't get lost!