This paper describes a prototype timeline tool designed for humanities researchers exploring digitised historical documents. The tool visualises keyword instances in context mapped by date, and can be used to explore commentary around themes through time. Through designing the tool and evaluating it with humanities scholars, the role of the designer in the digital humanities is explored. Interview evaluation with historians provides evidence for the tool's capacity to support historical research, but also raises design issues by pointing to the value of simple, minimal design in this domain for interpretability.

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