Date: Thu, 08 Apr 2010 14:58:12 -0500 From: Debbie Cardinal <cardinal@wils.wisc.edu> Subject: WHO News #15 Message-id: <9BEF77C2DF594720AE66D6E3A2AD9F6D@OCLCA>
View WHO News http://www.wils.wisc.edu/email/WHO/whonews15.html
Wisconsin Heritage Online News
April 2010, #15
CONTENTS
News of <http://www.wils.wisc.edu/email/WHO/whonews15.html#news#news> the
Day
Featured
<http://www.wils.wisc.edu/email/WHO/whonews15.html#collections#collections>
Collections
Project
<http://www.wils.wisc.edu/email/WHO/whonews15.html#projectnews#projectnews>
News
WHO
<http://www.wils.wisc.edu/email/WHO/whonews15.html#resourceswiki#resourceswi
ki> Resources Wiki
Events <http://www.wils.wisc.edu/email/WHO/whonews15.html#events#events> to
Note
News of the Day
Metadata harvesting slated to resume
The Wisconsin Heritage Online Technology Committee has been working hard
since June 2009 to learn more about the costs of metadata harvesting and
options to reduce these costs. Thanks to the committee's efforts, we have
great news to announce! Later this spring, the Division of Information
Technology (DoIT) at UW-Madison will resume harvesting metadata from digital
collections previously harvested for the WHO web portal
http://wisconsinheritage.org <http://wisconsinheritage.org/> . This is
referred to as "refresh" harvesting and will pull metadata for new items
added to existing collections since July 2009. This process will also update
any new server information or URL changes since July 2009. UW-Madison DoIT
and the UW-Madison General Library System will not charge for this refresh
harvest.
In a second stage, funded by donated monies from several sources, new
collections created since July 2009 will be harvested into the WHO portal.
This will occur after UW-Madison DoIT develops new computer routines to
smooth, simplify and improve error handling and to clean up runtime
configuration. The exact date for harvesting new collections is unknown, but
we are delighted at the prospect that harvesting for the Wisconsin Heritage
Online portal will resume in 2010!
Twitter Update: We score 300 followers; an East Coast genealogist scores a
big Wisconsin find
For the past several months, Wisconsin Heritage Online has used Twitter to
share new additions to digital collections and to follow updates from
libraries, archives, and museums both large and small. As of early April,
300 people and organizations across the country are following our Tweets.
Thanks to the Warrens Cranberry Festival (@WarrensCranfest) for becoming
follower #300!
Using Twitter has allowed us to connect with new audiences outside the
state. Recently a genealogist in Washington, D.C. tweeted to let us know
she'd made an exciting find through the WHO research portal:
Having so much fun searching through the records I've found through @
WiHeritage <http://twitter.com/WiHeritage> . Thank you for posting these
online! genealogy <http://twitter.com/search?q=%23genealogy>
Thanks to @WiHeritage <http://twitter.com/WiHeritage> , I've been able to
locate my Hans J HANSON in an 1800's plat map of Akan Township, Richland
Co., Wisconsin! genalogy <http://twitter.com/search?q=%23genealogy>
You can follow us on Twitter under the username @WiHeritage. Don't use
Twitter? You can still read our posts by visiting
http://twitter.com/wiheritage New to Twitter? Take a look at this guide to
<http://www.philb.com/twitter.htm> Twitter for librarians from Internet
consultant Phil Bradley.
Featured Collections
Richland County History Room
Grace Johnson CarterRCHR Grace Johnson Carter, first Richland County nurse
The Richland County <http://content.mpl.org/rchr/> History Room, part of
the Brewer Public Library in Richland Center, has posted a first group of 81
historic photographs to their CONTENTdm collection, hosted by the Milwaukee
Public Library. The project, led by Richland County History Room historian
Crystal Foley and Dr. Aharon Zorea, professor of history at the University
of Wisconsin-Richland, will eventually include over 1,000 photographs
depicting people and places throughout Richland County.
This digitization initiative is part of the "Richland Heritage Project" at
UW-Richland. Project coordinator Dr. Zorea writes: "Our campus started the
Richland Heritage Project in the fall of 2007, and it has been working in
cooperation with the Richland County History Room since its inception. The
Richland Heritage Project has received partial funding from the Richland
County Historical Society. It also includes a student internship program
where students receive college course credit for their work on the project.
Each term, 2-3 students are working as interns - usually for a period of two
or more terms. As of this year, we have had 10 students pass through the
internship."
McMillan Memorial Library
Andy Barnett, Assistant Director at McMillan Memorial Library
<http://content.mpl.org/mcmillan> in Wisconsin Rapids, is a long-term
advocate of digitization in Wisconsin. He's had digital versions of local
history texts and photographs available on his library's website for over
ten years. But these kinds of HTML-based digital collections can be
difficult to maintain and control. Andy wanted a way to organize his digital
collection in a web-accessible database, which provides better control of
metadata and images and allows more options for the re-use and display of
digital content. Andy will continue to load digital content to the library
website hosted by the server at South Central Library System.
raftman's story
McMillan Story of a raftsman's life on the Wisconsin River: Earning their
money
Andy chose the hosted CONTENTdm service from the Milwaukee Public Library.
Available through membership in Wisconsin Heritage Online, the hosted
service means that McMillan Memorial Library does not need to purchase
content management software or run a computer server themselves. And,
because of WHO's Outreach and Training Grant from the Nicholas Family
Foundation, the training and support Andy needs to move his digital content
into CONTENTdm are free!
Villa Terrace Decorative Arts Museum
Villa Terrace untitledVillaterrace Untitled (Balcony)
Milwaukee's Villa <http://content.mpl.org/villaterrace> Terrace Decorative
Arts Museum has begun to digitize its Cyril Colnik Archive, consisting of
over 300 blueprints and original drawings created by Cyril Colnik, a master
blacksmith in turn-of-the-20th century Milwaukee. Jenille Junco, Curatorial
Assistant at the Villa, is currently working to scan and catalog each image.
When the collection is complete, it will serve as a valuable resource for
blacksmiths, collectors, and fans of this popular craftsman's work
throughout the country.
Project News
Regional library systems work with member libraries
Outagamie-Waupaca Library System and Nicolet Federated Library System plan
to host digital collections for their member libraries using the CONTENTdm
server license owned by OWLS. They have developed a training plan and have
started outreach to libraries in their systems. WHO Outreach Specialist
Emily Pfotenhauer traveled to Appleton in February to meet with staff at
OWLS and the Appleton Public Library to review WHO metadata guidelines and
the use of CONTENTdm.
Two new WHO members
Whitefish Bay Library and the Old Main Historical and Community Arts Center
in Galesville are the newest members of Wisconsin Heritage Online. Whitefish
Bay Public Library is digitizing and will add to the server at Milwaukee
Public Library a unique collection of scrapbooks called the Mimi Bird
Historical Collection. The collection consists of 39 volumes if research
compiled by local historian Mimi Bird, each bound in a three-ring binder.
The content covers roughly what was formerly known as the Town of Milwaukee,
including the communities of Glendale, Fox Point, River Hills and Bayside,
in addition to Whitefish Bay.
From the library's website: Mimi Bird was a resident of Whitefish Bay since
the age of four. In the 1980's Mimi researched the history of the community
during which she compiled materials on the area, photographed homes,
businesses and landmarks, and organized it all into a set of thirty-nine
volumes which she donated to the Library.
The Milwaukee Historical Society recognized Mimi for her outstanding work
and in her Milwaukee Journal Sentinel obituary she was praised as "the
undisputed expert on local history, both in the village and the greater
North Shore area."
Few communities have such an historical treasure.
In 1976, Wade Britzius, with the support of the Trempealeau County
Historical Society, photographed historic sites and everyday life throughout
the county. He is now working with the Old Main Historical and Community
Arts Center and the Arcadia Area Historical Society to digitize these
photographs in order to share them with new audiences.
Langlade County Historical Society
AppleMark
The Langlade <http://www.langladehistory.com/> County Historical Society
works with TLAM students in Antigo signed on as a WHO member this winter in
order to share their collection of over 750 photographs by Arthur. J.
Kingsbury, a professional photographer who traveled throughout northern
Wisconsin in the first two or three decades of the 20th century. His
photographs were used to create picture postcards of local scenes including
lumber camps, resorts, and railroads as well as both posed portraits and
candid images of Ojibwa and Menominee Indians of the region.
Joe Hermolin, Langlade County Historical Society president, is working with
students in the Tribal Libraries, Archives and Museums (TLAM) course
<http://tlam999.wordpress.com/2010/01/25/tlam-spring-2010/> in the School
of Library and Information Studies (SLIS) at UW-Madison. The TLAM students
are exploring appropriate controlled vocabularies for cataloging Native
American archival materials and are investigating contacts at tribal
archives in the region in hopes of identifying some of the people and places
depicted in the images. In March, Professor Nancy Marie Mithlo of the Art
History and American Indian Studies departments at UW-Madison visited the
class to share her work with the Poolaw Photography
<http://nancymariemithlo.com/poolaw2008.htm> Project and to examine the
issues surrounding photographic representations of Native subjects.
Blanchardville Historical Society takes on first project
In late February, WHO Outreach Specialist Emily Pfotenhauer traveled to
southwest Wisconsin to train new WHO member Blanchardville Historical
Society in scanning and cataloging. Last fall, Blanchardville was awarded a
mini-grant from the Wisconsin Historical Society to fund the purchase of a
scanner in order to share their collections online. In the grant
application, they wrote: "We believe that access to the collection is a
vital part of the preservation of history and are working toward making that
possible by digitizing our collection and getting it up on the web. Given
our staffing limitations, this is the most efficient way to reach the most
people with our collection."
The group's first project is the digitization of two popular local history
books: A History of Blanchardville, Gem of the Pecatonica and Memories of
Blanchardville.
WHO Resources Wiki
PBWorks Wiki Content
The wiki contains a lot of information about digitization: planning,
organizing, content management systems, metadata, scanning - a LOT of
information. If you are not yet a Wisconsin Heritage Online member and your
organization is getting serious about digitizing your valuable and fragile
collections, this is the first place to start. We update the wiki frequently
with revised documentation, links to useful web sites, the WHO News and
anything else we think our members will use. Wisconsin Heritage Online
membership is $50 annually for small organizations; $100 for large
organizations or collaboratives.
PastPerfect Museum Software is one of the most popular content management
systems used by historical societies and museums in Wisconsin. In March, the
Wisconsin Historical Society and the Wisconsin Federation of Museums hosted
an introductory workshop for new PastPerfect users around the state. During
this daylong session, Emily Pfotenhauer offered a brief overview of how
local historical societies and museums can use PastPerfect to make their
collections data and images available online through WHO. To access the
recording, visit the WHO wiki: wilsnet-wiheritage.pbworks.com
<https://wilsnet-wiheritage.pbworks.com/>
_____
To Top <http://www.wils.wisc.edu/email/WHO/whonews15.html#begin#begin>
Principal writer and editor, Debbie Cardinal <mailto:cardinal@wils.wisc.edu>
. Contributions from Emily Pfotenhauer.
Wisconsin Heritage Online <http://wisconsinheritage.org/>
Wisconsin Heritage wiki <http://wilsnet-wiheritage.pbworks.com/>
Debbie Cardinal
Wisconsin Heritage Online Program Manager
<mailto:cardinal@wils.wisc.edu> cardinal@wils.wisc.edu
608 265-2138
Project Resources site: http://wiheritage.pbworks.com/
<http://wiheritage.pbwiki.com/>
<http://wiheritage.pbwiki.com/>
Portal <http://www.wisconsinheritage.org/> http://www.wisconsinheritage.org
http://www.wils.wisc.edu <http://www.wils.wisc.edu/>
728 State St., Rm. 464
Madison, WI 53706
Fax 608 262-6067
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