Information for organizations involved in digitization through SCRLC

SCHOAM! for August 2023

Special Collections, Historical Organizations, Archives & Museums

in short: News | Grants | Ideas | Events | Webinars | Jobs

News from SCRLC


New Design for NYS Historic Newspapers

Our colleagues at the Northern NY library council (NNYLN) who run the NYS Historic Newspapers website are hosting a training webinar on August 16 at 10 am to show off the upcoming new design.

There's a sneak peek of the site here, which will likely be fully rolled out by September 1.


New Collection: People and Places in Spencer

Spencer is a small town in Tioga County, New York. This collection represents the community with photographs and ephemera, including class pictures, farms, hotels, and churches.  


New Collection: Broome County Schools

This collection includes photographs of rural one-room schools in Broome County and large classrooms of the elementary and high schools of the larger cities. There are also photographs of the Lady Jane Grey School, a finishing school for young ladies in Binghamton that operated in the 1880s into the 1920s.


New Collection: Mills of Waterloo

Waterloo was a bustling village in the 19th century that made the most of its advantageous location on the Seneca River. Businesses and investors built the Bear Race (named for Major Samuel Bear) and expanded the Seneca Canal through the village. Local mills included the Waterloo Wool Manufacturing Company, established in part by the Hunt family to be a boycott against cotton created by slave labor.


New Collection: Cayuga County Postcards

Dozens of postcards from the Cayuga County Historian's Office that show towns and villages like Ira, Cato, Locke, Port Byron, Victory, Fair Haven, Conquest, Aurelius, and of course, Auburn.


New Collection: Librarian Professional Development Collection

Since the South Central Regional Library Council was chartered by the NYS Board of Regents in 1967, it has offered library workers a variety of professional development and continuing education opportunities. These are the 121 brochures from our archives, so you can take a walk down librarian memory lane.

Grants & Assistance


William G. Pomeroy Foundation Grants

Special interest grants (ie. not for historical markers) are available from the Pomeroy Foundation. They would love to see something that supports awareness of the Pomeroy Foundation's marker program, so consider applying for staff time to research and create a brochure of your local markers! That would be great to have leading up to America250. Do your local markers need repainting? In Auburn, we paid under $300 per marker to Tarjac in Seneca Falls; there may be a similar company near you.


Conservation Treatment Grants

The New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) and Greater Hudson Heritage Network (GHHN) are offering grants to help you get work done by professional conservators. Apply by September 1.


NEH Humanities Grants

The National Endowment for the Humanities has a few open grant applications you might apply for, including one for Dialogues on the Experience of War. This application is due September 7, and it seems like a good fit for any historical institution interested in veterans and oral histories, especially as there's no match required. A second open grant application, due in October, supports small and medium-sized colleges to support humanities projects like "curricular or program development, expert consultations, speakers’ series, student research, creation of teaching resources, and community engagement."

Ideas & Inspiration


Fundraising Recap in Your Newsletter

Cortland County Historical Society really excels at their communication with members. Their last newsletter included this, which I thought was worth sharing so you could imitate it for yourselves:

Proposals for Archives of Revolution: A Conference About How We Make the Past

Next June, Brown University will host a conference about collecting and privilege, interpreting the archives, and access and discovery, all with an eye to America250. One of the conference chairs, Sean Quimby, was once the head of Special Collections at Syracuse University and may be pleased to see some Upstate New York representation in the proposals, which are due August 15.


Can You Believe Your Eyes?

The Library of Congress sends out emails to anyone interested in teaching with primary sources, and this short article with two linked images is a fun exercise that may inspire you to look at your own collection for a similar lesson or outreach tool. The post includes tips and ideas for talking to students and working on their media literacy skills, an important topic in today's age of Photoshop and propaganda!


ICYMI: APHNYS in Ithaca

We're so excited that the Association of Public Historians of New York State (APHNYS) is in our backyard this year! Save the date: September 18–20, 2023 at Hotel Ithaca.

Happening in the Neighborhood


Museum Surveys

The Museum Association of New York (MANY) has a brief survey they'd like everyone to fill out, available here through August 18. You can take a look through the finished survey by the American Alliance of Museums: 2023 Annual National Snapshot of United States Museums. And lastly, keep your eye out for the ILMS National Museum Survey, which has already contacted a few of our members in its pilot phase.


History After Hours: Hometown History in Oneonta

The Greater Oneonta Historical Society is hosting historian Jim Greenberg on Thursday, August 17 from 5 to 7 pm to talk about his work on the WWII Fallen database. SCRLC awarded GOHS a grant to cover the fees for federal records of Oneonta WWII fallen veterans, and Mr. Greenberg, a retired IT director from SUNY Oneonta, has led the local Stories Behind the Stars project. If you're thinking about a similar veterans-based project, this would be a great public event to attend and get inspired by.


How the Sausage is Made in Chemung

Chemung County Historical Society has an exhibit now, It's About Time, in celebration of their 100th anniversary. It shows the public how they create exhibits and function as an organization. Happy birthday, CCHS! Stop by for their celebration, free and open to the public, on August 26 from 1 to 5 pm.


Books, Beer and Burgers in Cortland

Cortland County Historical Society is running a book sale fundraiser on August 20 and will have Smash Me 607 and Homer Hops hanging out to provide sustenance. They'll also have a booth at Cortland's Porchfest on the same day (which is all the more impressive with just a two person staff!).


Beers, Bikes and Barges in Port Byron

Take a leisurely bike ride along the Erie Canal with the Erie Canal Museum and the Canal Society of NYS. The historic tour on August 10 will end at Lunkenheimer Brewing.


Taste of Time in Corning

On Thursdays throughout August, Corning Museum of Glass is pairing wine and beer tastings with admission, plus a demo of the wood-fired furnace as part of their Dig Deeper series on ancient glass.


Founder's Day in Auburn

August 12th might be the busiest day of 2023 for Auburn as the city celebrates Founder's Day. The Cayuga Museum will have half price admission, including a tour of the Case Research Lab. The day before, Seward House Museum will have a free lecture about William Seward's father-in-law, Elijah Miller, who played a role in Auburn's founding.


Hidden Stories of Migrant Labor Camps Along the Chenango River Valley

Chenango County Historical Society is working with a Colgate University Summer Research Fellow, Sophia Lopez, to study the history of migrant workers in the area. CCHS is also looking for oral histories of anyone who remembers these workers, as an expansion of the Chenango Stories project.

Zooms & Webinars Up Your Alley


Embodying DEI and Cultural Humility in Workplace Wellness

Wednesday, August 9 at 10 am


AI and Libraries: Enhancing Services and Engaging Communities

Wednesday, August 9 at 3 pm


CLRC’s Sustainability Special Interest Group: Stormwater Challenges

Friday, August 11 at 10 am


Change is Still Required: What's Next?

Friday, August 11 at 12 pm


Sneak Peak: Searching the Hoard (NYS Historic Newspapers)

Wednesday, August 16 at 10 am


Climate Action Planning (Part 1): An Introduction

Wednesday, August 16 at 11 am


Departures and Arrivals: Succession Planning for Libraries

Wednesday, August 16 at 2 pm


NEDCC: Identifying and Assessing Grooved Media

Tuesday, August 22 at 12:30 pm | $45


HumanitiesNY Grants Information Webinar

Wednesday, August 23 at 12 pm


NEDCC: Writing a Collection Management Policy: Step-by-Step

Thursday, August 31 at 2 pm | $95


Library Juice Academy: Digital Repository Fundamentals and Design

September 4 through October 1, asynchronous | $200 - email Diane for a discount code


In-Person Events


Our Stories, Our Voices: A Hands-On Workshop on Digitizing Community Archives

Friday, August 25 in Rochester, $125


Conflict Management with Munna Rubaii

Tuesday, September 5 at 10 am in Ithaca | $50


SAA: Preserving Digital Archives

Thursday, September 7 from 9 to 5 pm in Carlisle, PA | $219-$389


28th Annual Long Island Archives Conference: Transcending Barriers: Opening Archives, Opening Minds

October 23 at SUNY Old Westbury | Early bird registration of $30 through September 15


Handle with Care: Working with Fragile Collections

Thursday, October 26 from 9:30 to 12:30 at Saratoga Springs Public Library


Recordings

Openings in the Field


That's all for this month! Send me an email if there's anything at your organization you'd like me to include in the next newsletter: [email protected] | Claire Lovell, Digital Services Librarian

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