Horseshoe Farm Nature Preserve & Historical Farm House Exhibits

RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA

 

Horseshoe Farm Nature Preserve is a unique plot of land that was originally the homestead site of a Raleigh family. A horseshoe curve in the Neuse River surrounds the property, filled with undeveloped pastures and woodland.

 

The farm, now a nature preserve, is a popular spot for visitors who enjoy biking, walking, bird watching, and kite flying. We worked directly with the City of Raleigh to make sure the new sign systems followed the Parks and Recreation branding guidelines. Design Dimension, Inc. designed, produced, and installed the signs and metal carriers.

 

Highlighting Animal Species, Habitats, and Sustainable Features

 

The site has unique sustainable features, a bit of cultural history, and tons of natural history. The Design Dimension team helped the City of Raleigh to highlight these special features in a series of interpretive signs for the park. First, we helped to map out the sign locations by creating a wayfinding site plan. We worked with the city and family to create custom illustrations and detailed graphics including timelines and custom maps. The largest kiosk sign utilized a perforated metal to keep the look light and airy, helping the visitor look past the sign into the open pasture while interpreting the map. Overall, the signage should add to the visitor experience, creating a system that is recognizable and easy to understand.

 

Understanding the Story of the Site

 

Design Dimension was excited to attend the ribbon cutting ceremony of the Horseshoe Farm Park Nature Preserve. We had the opportunity to work directly and meet with the family that called the farm home. It was wonderful to learn about the memories the Hedrick family had here and how they truly enjoy what the land has to offer.  It is part of our commitment to the project to attend the ribbon cuttings to celebrate the project completion and observe visitors interacting with our exhibits.

 

Continued Partnership

 

In 2018, we went under contract to finalize the exhibit inside the family farmhouse. The exhibit contains panels that describe the site history, custom artifact cases, a timeline, and informational “things to do.”