Copyright The Statesman- Examiner / July, 2007
Preserving Local History
Heritage Network receives $33,687 in
equipment and software
DANI BULL
Statesman-Examiner Staff Reporter
The Heritage Network is dedicated to protecting and preserving artifacts, including photographs, of a historical nature.
Thanks to grants and contributions in the amount of $33,687 obtained by the Heritage Network and SecureWebs for equipment and software, local museums and historical societies now have the ability to digitally preserve historical photographs and artifacts.
The Heritage Network is a forum for member organizations and individuals with an interest in history. Their goal is to connect history enthusiasts with local heritage organizations and together advocate for the smaller rural museums and historical societies.
The Heritage Network and AmeriCorps-VISTA Elaine Colby, with are collaborating on a digital history project based in Colville.
AmeriCorps is a federal agency program off the new equipment created to connect Americans with an used to digitize historical opportunity to give back to their country and photographs and artifacts. community. AmeriCorps-VISTA (Volunteers In Service To America), specifically, provides available to the public through The Heritage full-time personnel to public agencies and Network website at http://theheritagenetwork.org/ community based organizations to expand and create local programs. Newport, Pend Oreille, Loon Lake and Stevens.
For The Heritage Network, Elaine Colby an AmeriCorp-Vista member, has proven to be a real asset with the preservation and digitization of historical assets.
"Many Heritage Network member museums and historical centers are understaffed, unfamiliar with digital technology, and lack appropriate tools to preserve these artifacts and make them accessible to the larger public," said Colby.
With this in mind, Colby assisted in the application and now the administration of a grant from Inland Northwest Community Foundation in the amount of $8,687.
These funds were used to purchase equipment to digitally preserve photographs, artifacts and documents that are regionally historical.
"The equipment is especially effective with items that must be handled delicately or rarely, are damaged or shaped in a way° traditional scanning is not possible," explained Colby.
Local museums and facilities can select 50 items for the project. The digital images will then be available to the public through The Heritage Network website at www.theheritagenetwork.org.
Newport, Pend Oreille, Loon Lake and Stevens County Historical Societies are just a few of the organizations lined up to take advantage of this opportunity.
Scott Hirsch with SecureWebs in Colville, also a member of The Heritage Network, obtained the software necessary to make the online catalog of digital images available.
The "Community Server" software was obtained from a generous contribution from telligent, a software company specializing in Microsoft NET technologies.
Blogs, forums, file and photo sharing is an integral part of what the software valued at $25,000 can do.
Historical images can then be offered to the public online for purchase. This win-win situation not only preserves the historical photo or document but generates revenue for the museums.
SecureWebs has donated office and work space for Colby and the equipment during this three year program.
