Grand Rapids Elite Visualization
I chose to look at Grand Rapids Elite (Combination), 1914, by Brian Sarnacki. In this visualization, the majority of the nodes were individual people. However, the larger nodes that precede the smaller nodes are the organizations and clubs the individuals were members of. Specifically, the individuals/smaller nodes of this visualization were considered the “elite” of Grand Rapids. Meanwhile, the larger nodes were Grand Rapid’s Women’s Clubs and Social Welfare Organizations these “elite” were members of. Hovering over the individuals and clubs/organizations reveals their names. The edges, represented as fairly faint lines, shows the connections of these Grand Rapids elite, showcasing how different elite are connected through intermediary relationships between organizations, and in their own individual organizations.
The only interactions the website appears to allow is being able to hover over nodes to highlight them, displaying their name (whether it is a person or organization). It also allows for the viewer to click the nodes, which then pops a list of all the node’s connections. For instance, clicking the node “Social Welfare Association” displays a sidebar that lists all of the names of the elite that have connections with the organization, whether it be actual members of just that organization, or intermediary nodes that act as connections between multiple organizations. This compliments the meaning of this visualization as clicking just one node can reveal the extensive names of the elite that have connections to the person or organization. Also located in this sidebar is modularity class of the node, and the node’s eigenvector centrality.
This visualization is effective at displaying just how the elite of Grand Rapids are connected. Though one organization or organization member may seem tightly-knit, this visualization shows that all of the organizations and their elite members are connected throughout their city. It should also be noted that the data was collected from 1914 directories in the Grand Rapids Public Library’s Grand Rapids Federation of Women’s Literary Clubs collection and Chamber of Commerce collection.
