Washington County Museum will create digital photography archive
Published: Friday, March 11, 2011, 2:16 PM Updated: Friday, March 11,2011, 3:18 Pm
The Washington County Museum is launching a project this month to develop an online digital archive of historical images. Working with the Pacific University Library, the museum plans to put 6,000 photographs — collected from the museum, the university and local libraries — online this year. The museum will catalog and index “heritage and cultural materials” so that museum and library users can find items within the collection easier.
“Think of it as a Library of Congress catalog for local history,” Executive Director Sam Shogren wrote in a news release.
The museum has spent two years working to develop the project, which is underwritten by $107,000 in federal grant funds from the Institute for Museum and Library Services. As part of the project, the museum has hired a project manager. Lindsey Prescott will work at the museum and the university with volunteers to digitize the collections.
The museum is still working on its other big project. Last month, the museum’s collections manager reorganized the museum. Heather Bouchey increased the museum’s storage capacity from 900 square feet to 2,500 square feet. That will allow the museum to bring more of its collections out of storage. Bouchey and a group of volunteers found several interesting items, such as a Magneto Switchboard from 1888 built by Forest Grove resident Samuel Grant Hughes as well as a portable 1940s radio.
For more historical Washington County news, check out the museum’s website.
– Casey Parks, Twitter: @HlsboroReporter
