Creating and Editing data with ArcGIS Pro

ArcGIS Pro offers a comprehensive suite of tools designed for data creation, from digitizing new features to importing and converting existing datasets. The intuitive interface, including the Edit tab and contextual tools, streamlines the process of adding, modifying, and managing geographic information. Whether you are creating new layers from scratch, updating attributes, or performing complex geometry edits, ArcGIS Pro provides the functionality needed to ensure your data is accurate and up to date.

1 - Data download.

Follow this link to download the ArcGIS Pro package (Salish_Sea_IC) that will be used in this article https://tribalgis-my.sharepoint.com/:u:/p/sarques/Eeo1GW9Zw-VMiIJtFs7xkI8BgPM7WwpPq0EzLajFU-e07A?e=8YhN0U. Save it in a meaningful location.

2 - Double-click on the package to open the project in ArcGIS Pro. Sign in into your ArcGIS Online account if required.

This map illustrates the locations of indigenous communities in the Salish Sea region, spanning Washington State and British Columbia. Currently, some locations in Washington State have been intentionally omitted, and the attribute table is incomplete. In this article we will focus on editing the attribute table of the tribes and adding the missing locations. We will also create a new feature layer that represents a few main cities.

3 - Edit the Attribute table

• In the Contents pane, right-click on the Tribe layer. Select Attribute Table to open it.

As you can see, the Attribute table is missing some information in the Reservation Name field (Resa_name).

• To start editing the attribute table, just double click the cell that you would like to edit. The first Tribe is the Tulalip Tribe.

The name Tulalip Reservation comes from the Census Bureau, but the Tulalip Tribes is the official name of the tribe.

• Let's add a field in our attribute table so we can include the Tribes' official names.
• First you need to save your edits. Go to the Edit tab on the ribbon and click Save in the Manage Edits group.

• Now we can add a new field in the Attribute table. Left click Add to add a field.

• For the Field Name & Alias write Name and for the Data type, select Text in the drop-down menu.

• In the Manage Edits group, click Save to apply changes and save your edits. Save your project as well (quick access tool bar at the top left corner).

• Now you can edit the Name field to add the Tribes' names.

4 - A few tribes are missing from the attribute table. We will now add them using the Create Features tool.

• Go to the Edit tab on the ribbon and click Create in the Features group.

• In the Create Feature pane, click on Tribe to activate the editing toolbar.

• Let's add the Lummi Nation first. Locate the Lummi Reservation on the topographic basemap and place your point. A row will be automatically added to your attribute table.

• Populate the new row with the Lummi Nation's information.

• I added a few other tribes.

• Save your edits and save your project.

5 - We will now create a new layer named City and add the cities of Vancouver, Victoria, Bellingham, Seattle, and Olympia.

• Open your Catalog pane. If the Catalog pane is not already open, go to the View tab and click Catalog pane in the Windows group.
• In the Project pane, expand the Folders, the Salish_Sea_IC folder and locate the Salish_Sea_IC.gdb.

• Right-click on Salish_Sea_IC.gdb, select New and Feature Class.

• Write down City for the Name and Alias and choose Point for the Feature Class Type.

• At the bottom of the Create Feature Class pane click Next. Add a new field named Name and choose Text for the Data Type.

• At the bottom of the Create Feature Class pane click Next. In the Spatial Reference pane choose NAD_1983_Lambert_Conformal_Conic as the Coordinate System and click Next multiple times and Finish.

• The City feature class has been created and added to the geodatabase and the Contents pane. We now need to edit it to add our main cities: Vancouver, Victoria, Bellingham, Seattle, and Olympia.
• First, let's change the feature's symbology. In the Contents pane, right click on City and select Symbology.

• In the Symbology pane, left click on the feature's symbol and click on Gallery.

• We'll change the feature's symbol to Star 1. Feel free to choose another symbol.

• In the Properties pane, change the font size to 9 pt.

• Close the Symbology pane. You are now ready to edit the City feature class.

• Go to the Edit tab on the ribbon and click Create in the Features group.

• In the Create Feature pane, click on City to activate the editing toolbar.

• Add the following cities: Vancouver, Victoria, Bellingham, Seattle, and Olympia. Edit the Attribute Table with the cities' names as well.

• When you are finished, Save your edits and save your project.
• We are going to display the Cities' labels. In the Contents pane click the World Terrain Reference to toggle its visibility.

• In the Contents pane, right click on City and select Labeling Properties.

• By default, the OBJECTID label is displayed. Let's change the Arcade expression to display the Name label.

• Delete $feature.OBJECTID and double click on Name to display the new Arcade expression. Click Apply and close the Labelling Properties pane.

• Now let's display our cities 'names. In the Contents pane, right click on City and select Label.

• Let's edit the text. In the Contents pane, right click on City and select Labeling Properties. In the Labeling Properties pane click the Symbol tab.

• Change the font type to Arial, the font size to 9 pt, and the text color to Gray 70%.

• Scroll down until you locate the Halo symbol. Select the White Fill. Click Apply if needed.

• Save your project!

We hope that this article has been helpful! If you have any feedback or questions, please feel free to send us an email or connect with us for a chat. The NTGISC team is here to assist you further!

Reference (s):

Census Bureau

https://www2.census.gov/geo/tiger/TIGER2023/AIANNH/

https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/geography/about/glossary.html#par_textimage_1