Check out a cool new feature of our Grand Coulee to Grunge exhibit   — tablets!  Bilingual translations, great archival photos, drilldown information and more add to the experience of the popular exhibit in the Secretary of State’s lobby in the Capitol.

Our Legacy Washington team now has five tablet computers available for office visitors to check out at the front desk to enrich their visit. The exhibit opened late last summer and comes down this October before going on the road. The exhibit shows some of the ways Washington people, products and ingenuity have put the state on the map globally.

Each tablet offers photo collections from our State Archives and State Library, a translated version of the exhibit in Spanish, as well as a video about Legacy Washington, the part of our office that promotes the state’s history through exhibits, books, e-books, videos and online stories, and more.

Secretary of State Kim Wyman loves the addition of tablets to broaden the experience for Capitol visitors who want to see the GC2G exhibit.

“More and more museums are offering tablets or computers to enhance the visitor experience for those who can’t read English, or want a more interactive way to enjoy an exhibit,” Wyman said. “I think it’s important for us to be on the cutting edge of displaying our office exhibits, so I’m excited that visitors to our office can experience Grand Coulee to Grunge, literally in their hands.”

Microsoft donated the five tablets. The exhibit is free and was not produced at public expense, other than staff time.