Explore UNF's hidden history through an interactive "Ghost Tour," maps, and media!
Though UNF is a young university with a brief history, there are some stories of at least one traditional ghost that haunts the Crossings Q residence hall. For the purposes of this tour, however, we are using “ghost” in a metaphorical sense to refer to architectural ghosts or remnants of prior usage of buildings still visible in the landscape. For example, changes in brick indicate where a window once was on the wall of building 15, or a storage closet with a vault door shows that the Honors office was once the Cashier’s office. Tracking these "ghosts" offers us the chance to view UNF’s history and architectural development through a metaphor that adds an aura of mystery to a modern campus.
This "ghost tour" is an interactive map that uses GPS to find "Ghosts" within a 100ft radius of your location. The next time you are walking around UNF's campus, use the smartphone-friendly map to explore UNF's hidden history. If you cannot visit the campus, you can explore the ghosts of UNF through the map.
This project was built by:
Jack Davis (Graduate Assistant, Hicks Honors College) based on the research and contributions of Julia Cronyn, Nadeen Ghazy, Katherine Hall, Emily Oostwouder, Helena Riedeburg, and Ethan Stefonek in the 2022 Honors Ghost Tour class conceived and taught by Dr. Leslie Kaplan.
We offer gratitude to Robert Richardson (Director of the UNF Research Technology Services) for his expertise and problem-solving. Susan Swiatosz, Head of Special Collections, and Jennifer Bibb, Coordinator, Library Services, at the Carpenter Library, offered an introduction to and assistance with the abundant archival material in the UNF library collections. Thank you to Jeff Chamberlain, Dean of the Hicks Honors College, for his support. Thanks are also due to Chris Baynard, Associate Professor of Economics and Geography, Coggin College of Business for his assistance with the conception of the project.
