From the Desk of Evan Robb

Throughout 2012 we learned a great deal about how the unique resources in our Washington Rural Heritage collections are impacting end users–and we’re learning directly from the users themselves.  Since enabling the public commenting feature on our digital library software in January, 2012 we’ve received over 100 comments on items in more than 25 digital collections from throughout the state.  Here are a few standouts:

A user named “JRW” commented on this photo depicting logging on Alfred Gardene’s homestead in Everson, Washington:

 “So grateful to have found these photos! We now live on this very property and are in the midst of returning the homestead to historic glory.”

The Everson McBeath Community Library (Whatcom County Library System) has done a particularly good job at mobilizing community members to identify, date, and otherwise enrich records in its Nooksack Valley Heritage collection, which was recently published in late 2012.

A user named Melinda attached this nice note to a record describing the life of Ellensburg’s Thomas S. Kirk:

“We always called him Uncle Tom, he was married to my Grandmother Ida Suver Kirk. He was always so kind to me and created such nice memories as a child for me.”

This photo is one of roughly 1,300 portraits taken by amateur photographer Fred. L. Breckon, former Ellensburg City Engineer. Accompanied by detailed biographical information, this sub-collection is a valuable genealogical resource for Washington’s Kittitas Valley. The entire Fred L. Breckon portrait collection has been digitized by the Ellensburg Public Library and is available through its Ellensburg Heritage Collection.

Another user named Byron recently added biographical information to an image of his uncle, shown here while attending Vashon College:

“Nice photo of my uncle, Chauncey Jones [left]. He went on to study medicine at the University of Chicago, studied humanities at UC Berkeley and practiced medicine and surgery in Everett, WA until his untimely death in 1944 at the age of 64 years. He was the son of A.C. and Mrs A.C. (Alonzo C. and Nettie Bentley) pictured in the photo taken in 1892 of the Vashon College faculty.”

Additional materials documenting Vashon College from 1890 to 1912 (when the original college closed), were digitized in 2008 by staff at the Vashon Library, King County Library System. They can be viewed as part of the larger Vashon Island Heritage Collection.

Finally, we’ve received more than a few corrections and identifications over the last year, including this correction to a striking group portrait photograph from Pullman, WA (two of the individuals had previously been misidentified):

“This photo is actually Clara Hull Newton (back left) and Nick (Earl H.) Newton (front left). They are my Great Grandparents. The Crawfords are identified correctly. –Marti Lothspeich Fulfs”

This photo is one of more than 2,000 documents from over 100 individual families (and counting) digitized by Whitman County Library as part of its Whitman County Heritage Collection.  Whitman County Library’s multi-year, community-based digitization efforts have brought participatory history to every town in the county, and continue to unearth hidden treasures in family collections throughout the greater Palouse region.

Prior to the integration of a public commenting feature in our digital collections, members of the public were forced to contact us by email if they had questions or corrections.  Needless to say, the amount and frequency of such feedback was much lower than it has been since implementing public commenting.  We look forward to more comments in 2013.  More identifications, dates, and stories. Without your participation, we’re simply history!

Discover free and inexpensive trainings available online and around the state; compiled by Jennifer Fenton, CE/Training Coordinator, Washington State Library

Featured Free Trainings:

Registration information for the below trainings and webinars is available at: http://www.sos.wa.gov/library/libraries/training/trainingCalendar.aspx

 Washington State Library is pleased to offer the following FREE online training in December:

 First Tuesdays: Exploring Washington Rural Heritage Digital Collections

December 4, 9:00-10:00 a.m. PT

Join us as Washington State Library’s Evan Robb and Ross Fuqua provide an introduction to searching, browsing, and exploring Washington Rural Heritage, a digital repository for Washington’s public libraries. The presentation will demonstrate advanced search functionality, website navigation, and integration of social media and collection visualization components. Presented by Evan Robb and Ross Fuqua, Washington State Library.

For these and many more free and low-cost trainings, visit the Washington State Library Training calendar which is constantly being updated, so check back frequently.

WebJunction Washington Courses (must be logged into WJ WA to view courses):

WebJunction has launched the new site; here is some information to help you understand the new WebJunction Washington. There are now two sites, the portal page which does not require a log-in and the course catalog which requires affiliation with Washington to access free courses. Courses are unlimited.

New portal website: http://www.webjunction.org/partners/washington.html

*Please note that the content has not yet been added, so it is a skeleton website at this time.

New Learning Management System for courses:

• New members: https://www.webjunction.org/find-training/request-access/ 

• Existing WJ WA members: To sign in, go https://oclc.plateau.com/plateau/user/login.jsp

User ID: USERID; Password: WebJunction

Early registration for January WebJunction webinars is now open:

The Impact of an Ice Cream Sundae

Tuesday, January 15, 2013 ♦ 11 am Pacific ♦ 60 min

Early Registration: http://www.webjunction.org/events/webjunction/The_Impact_of_an_Ice_Cream_Sundae.html

What does an ice cream sundae have to do with library partnerships? Let’s pretend that your community organizations (school, academic, public and special libraries, and other local organizations) are your favorite kind of ice cream. Now let’s ladle your favorite toppings over the ice cream to represent  the organizations’ resources, programs, personnel and funding.  How can the ice cream “mix” with the toppings to be the most luscious dessert possible for the most people?  When community organizations collaborate to share their resources with one another, they make the biggest possible impact on the most lives. Learn easy, understandable and powerful strategies that will give you renewed energy to create bold and imaginative collaborations among all types of community organizations.

Presented by: Kathy Jacobs, Director, Yankton (SD) Community Library

Creating a Culture of Innovation in your Library and Community

Wednesday, January 23, 2013 ♦ 10 am Pacific ♦ 60 min

Early Registration:  http://www.webjunction.org/events/webjunction/Creating_a_Culture_of_Innovation.html

We hear about libraries that are leaders in innovation, implementing ideas that keep the library growing and vital. Perhaps you have watched from the sidelines and wished you could kickstart some innovation at your library, but you’re not sure where to start. Come to this webinar for an active and lively discussion on how to find innovative ideas, how to connect with the people to help make them happen, and how to get buy-in and support for your ideas. There is a lot to be learned from other libraries’ examples and experiences.

Presented by: Heather Braum, Digital & Technical Services Librarian at the Northeast Kansas Library System, blogger at www.heatherbraum.info, and 2010 Kansas Library Association’s New Professional of the Year.

 For many more free and low-cost trainings, visit the Washington State Library Training calendar which is constantly being updated, so check back frequently.

 For more information on these and many more CE events, continue reading….

 Training Opportunities in December 2012

For full information, please click on the link or visit http://www.sos.wa.gov/library/libraries/training/trainingCalendar.aspx

*Please note that all times are listed in PT on this list, some webinar registrations will reflect other time zones

12/3/2012: Makerspaces: A New Wave of Library Service
12/3/2012: Open Mic Night with Dr. Joyce Valenza!
12/4/2012: First Tuesdays
12/4/2012: Tech-Savvy Staff: Better Service for Library Users
12/4/2012: Create a Story and Tell it Too: Engaging Supporters with Online Video
12/4/2012: Reading is a Superpower! Comic Books, Graphic Novels, & Literacy
12/5/2012: Applying the 70:20:10 Enterprise Learning Model
12/5/2012: Branding yourself and your library career on LinkedIn
12/5/2012: It’s Not Just for Kids Anymore: Adult Summer Reading Programs
12/6/2012: How to Create Your Own Library (or Personal!) Knowledge Base.
12/6/2012: Assessing the Cloud for Nonprofits and Libraries
12/6/2012: Outreach Programs in Rural Communities: Simple Steps for Surprising Results
12/6/2012: Lerner Publishing Group Spring 2013 Librarian Preview Webinar
12/7/2012: Tech Tools With Tine: 1 Hour of Evernote
12/7/2012: Accessibility Handbook: Making 508-Compliant Websites
12/10/2012: Bozarthzone! Nuts and Bolts of Social Media
12/11/2012: Better Together: Tech Trainers Sharing Expertise
12/11/2012: Creating a Comprehensive and Engaging Volunteer Training Program
12/11/2012: Mobile Accessibility – The Status of Accessibility in Mobile Devices
12/12/2012: What Would Walt Do?: Quality Customer Service for Libraries
12/12/2012: Polite Debate Society
12/12/2012: Basic Graphic Design for Library Staff: Quick and Easy Solutions
12/12/2012: Perfect Phrases for Fundraising
12/13/2012: Making the Choice: Mobile Solutions for Your Library

 **Please note that times and topics are subject to change and WSL is not responsible for non-WSL events. Please verify time and topic when registering. Also, new webinars are added to the training calendar throughout the month as time allows, so please check back. This is only a partial list of free CE Events available online.

 Archived presentations:

Don’t have time to catch these courses live? Many are available later as an archived presentation. To view archives, visit the following sites:

Infopeople

Common Knowledge

School Library Journal

Booklist

Tech Soup

Library Journal

SirsiDynix Institute

WebJunction

NCompass Live

Texas State Library

American Management Association

Carterette Series Webinars Archive: Georgia Library Association

* WSL provides information about outside training events for your convenience only; please contact the event sponsor for the most up-to-date information and all questions about the event.

Sometimes a seemingly insignificant coincidence can turn into a meaningful connection… or at least send you down a rabbit hole of late-night Googling.

A few weeks ago, I was visiting the Davenport, Washington public library for a couple days with Washington Rural Heritage (WRH) Project Manager Evan Robb. We were there helping Davenport librarian Katy Pike develop a small digital collection through a partnership with the Lincoln County Historical Museum.

After two productive days scanning photographs and documents we packed up our gear and were getting ready to leave when Tannis Jeschke of the Lincoln County Museum pulled out one last photo. The image, from the 1910s or 1920s, showed two children posed in a cart being pulled by… a goat. We all laughed at the humorous image, and I lamented the fact that we’d already loaded our scanner and laptops into the car.

Katy Pike took another look at the goat cart photo and said, “Hmm… at home, I have a very similar photo of my grandmother sitting in a goat cart just like this one.” I asked where the photo of her grandmother was taken and she believed it was somewhere in the greater Spokane area. We all agreed this must have been from the same photographer and most likely the same goat and cart. We headed home and forgot about goat carts….. until….

A week later we were helping Susan Johns and Lissa Duvall of Whatcom County Library System finalize their brand new WRH collection, Nooksack Valley Heritage, when we noticed this goat cart image (below), taken in Bellingham in 1928.

Three goat carts within a single week seemed too good to be true… So I starting looking online for more.

As it turns out, the goat cart was a common device for traveling photographers to use for soliciting business to create portrait photography and photo postcards, from the late 19th century through the 1920s.

This kind of image was at one time so prevalent, in fact, the Library of Congress has included Goat carts as a controlled term in their Thesaurus of Graphic Materials – the same controlled vocabulary we use to provide subject access to materials within Washington Rural Heritage Collections. Our cursory research has turned up goat cart images from all across the United States, from New England to the Deep South, and throughout the Midwest and Western States.

This fun discovery has also moved us to try out the social bookmarking tool Pinterest at WSL to “collect” images of goat carts from other digital collections and sources around the Web. Check it out and follow our ‘Goat Carts’ Pinterest board.

Our Internet friends at HistoryPin have also jumped on the goat cart, er, bandwagon this week, too. They’ve started a collection of geo-referenced goat cart images featuring our Nooksack Valley image, as well as one made as far away as Brisbane, Australia! If you have not yet played around with HistoryPin, we encourage you to check out this amazing, crowd-sourced resource.

Volume 8, October 4, 2012 for the WSL Updates mailing list

Topics include:

1) NEWS FROM WASHINGTON RURAL HERITAGE

2) EBOOKS AND EREADERS SURVEY

3) FREE DISASTER PREPAREDNESS WORKSHOP

4) CALL FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT BOOK CHAPTERS

5) SCHOOL LIBRARY HUMANITIES AWARD

6) FREE CE OPPORTUNITIES NEXT WEEK

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1) NEWS FROM WASHINGTON RURAL HERITAGE

Seven public libraries throughout the state recently completed work on 2011 LSTA grant projects for Washington Rural Heritage. The WSL-led digitization initiative currently provides online access to 25 collections representing the holdings of more than 80 cultural institutions. Explore some of the new content:

New grant-funded collections:

• Connell Heritage (www.washingtonruralheritage.org/cdm/landingpage/collection/connell) from the Connell Branch of Mid-Columbia Libraries, in partnership with the Connell Heritage Museum and the Franklin County Graphic;
• Nooksack Valley Heritage (www.washingtonruralheritage.org/cdm/landingpage/collection/nooksack) from the Everson McBeath Community Library, Whatcom County Library System;
• North Central Washington Heritage (www.washingtonruralheritage.org/cdm/landingpage/collection/ncrl) from the North Central Regional Library, in partnership with the Initiative for Rural Innovation and Stewardship (IRIS).

New content from existing collections:

• Wilson Banner Ranch photos (sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/asotin2011grant) from a private collection digitized by the Asotin County Library;
• Early Odessa, Washington photos (sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/odessa2011grant) from the holdings of the Odessa Historisches Museum, digitized by the Odessa Public Library;
• Community life and coal mining photos (sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/roslyn2011grant) from a private collection digitized by the Roslyn Public Library;
• Historic barn photos and more Fred L. Breckon portraits (sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/ellensburg2011grant) from the local history archives of the Ellensburg Public Library.

Participating libraries also continue to add content using local resources, volunteers, and alternative funding sources:

• From Whitman County Library (sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/whitman2011-2012continuing). Almost 1,000 items from private collections and institutional partners;
• From the Stevenson Community Library, Fort Vancouver Regional Library District (sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/skamania2011-2012continuing). Privately held items documenting early Skamania County.

Six public libraries and one tribal library are currently working on grant projects for 2012-2013. Applications for a new LSTA grant cycle will be available on the Washington State Library website beginning in February, 2013. To find out more about Washington Rural Heritage, please contact Evan Robb, Project Manager at [email protected], 360-704-5228.

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2) EBOOKS AND EREADERS SURVEY

Infopeople (infopeople.org) would like your input for an online course on eReaders and downloading eBooks set to launch in January, 2013. A short survey has been created for the purpose of collecting your experience with various eReader devices and identifying topics that will address knowledge gaps and support issues related to downloading eBooks to electronic devices. The survey is located at www.surveymonkey.com/s/H787FGR.

Please feel free to pass this link on to anyone who may be interested. Your responses will guide development of a course targeted for front-line support staff who assist patrons in eBook content access and download. Information regarding this new Infopeople offering will be announced at a later time.

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3) FREE DISASTER PREPAREDNESS WORKSHOP

You may have a disaster preparedness plan, but will it work when disaster strikes? Sign up today for the free workshop, “Are You Ready? Scenario Planning & Collaboration Among Heritage Institutions to Improve Disaster Preparedness for Collections,” funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities. Take a day to test your institution’s disaster plan to identify areas for improvement, to improve your ability to evaluate risks, and to work together with other participants to build a shared vision for regional disaster preparedness.

The workshop instructor is Gary Menges, Librarian Emeritus, University of Washington, and WESTPAS trainer. One workshop in the state of Washington is scheduled for the end of October:

• Wednesday, October 24, 2012, 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m., Everett Public Library;
• Pre-registration required no later than Monday, October 22, 2012, at 5:00 p.m.;

For additional information and to register, go to www.sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/RUReadyEverett. For general and workshop content information, contact Gary Menges at [email protected]. For registration assistance, contact Alexandra Gingerich at [email protected].

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4) CALL FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT BOOK CHAPTERS

Samantha Schmehl Hines, Associate Professor, Distance Education Coordinator, and Head of the Mansfield Library, University of Montana, is soliciting chapters for a book titled Revolutionizing the Development of Library and Information Professionals: Planning for the Future. Professor Hines requests content from anyone involved in professional development for a library association: conference planners, continuing education coordinators, researchers, writers, and presenters in the field. She is seeking a range of material focusing on all levels, types, and aspects of professional development.

Contact information: [email protected] or 406.243.7818.

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5) SCHOOL LIBRARY HUMANITIES AWARD

The ALA Public Programs Office is now accepting nominations for the $4,000 2013 Sara Jaffarian School Library Program Award for Exemplary Humanities Programming. School libraries, public or private, that served children in any combination of grades K-8 and conducted humanities programs during the 2011-2012 school year are eligible. Applications and award guidelines are available at www.ala.org/jaffarianaward. To be considered, nominations must be received by the ALA Public Programs Office by December 15.

The ALA Public Programs Office and ProgrammingLibrarian.org present the 2012 winner in an online learning opportunity especially for school librarians. Francis Feeley, school librarian of Inter-American Magnet School in Chicago, Ill., will present his award-winning humanities program model for school libraries ,”Who Are We?” which challenged seventh- and eighth-grade students to explore the individual and collective behavior of human beings in the past and present in a series of quarterly research projects. Feeley will discuss elements of his award application that lead to his selection, and give tips to prospective applicants to help get their applications started.

Workshop details:

• Wednesday, October 24, 2012, 2:00 PDT;
• Registration: www.sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/who-are-we;
• Questions: ALA Public Programs Office: [email protected] or 800-545-2433 x5045.

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6) FREE CE OPPORTUNITIES NEXT WEEK

Monday, October 8:

• Advanced Searching: Beyond the Single Search Box (ProQuest); 9:00 – 9:45 a.m. PDT: www.sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/PQ437;
• ProQuest Learning: Literature (ProQuest); 1:00 – 2:00 p.m. PDT: www.sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/PQ440;

Tuesday, October 9:

• All You Need to Know about E-reader services in Your Library (WSL); Richland Public Library, Richland, 9:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. PDT;
• My Research & RefWorks: Perfect Together (ProQuest); 10:00 – 10:30 a.m. PDT: www.sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/PQ438;
• Grantseeking Basics (GrantSpace); 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. PDT;
• Ring the Dinner Bell: New Cookbooks to Enjoy (Booklist); 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. PDT;
• Google Yourself Silly (InSync); 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. PDT;
• Personal Gadgets and the Library (Infopeople); 12:00 – 1:00 p.m. PDT;
• Mental Health First Aid USA for Library Staff (ALA); 12:00 – 1:00 p.m. PDT: www.sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/MentalHealth;
• Factors Influencing Funding Decisions by Elected Politicians at the State/Provincial Level: A Case Study of Public Libraries in Canada (San Jose State University); 12:00 – 1:00 p.m. PDT;
• Common Core and ProQuest Resources (ProQuest); 12:00 – 1:00 p.m. PDT: www.sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/PQ441;
• History Study Center (ProQuest); 1:00 – 2:00 p.m. PDT: www.sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/PQ442;

Wednesday, October 10:

• New Librarians Global Connection: best practices, models and recommendations (ALA); 8:00 – 9:00 a.m. PDT;
• All You Need to Know about E-reader services in Your Library (WSL); Ritzville Public Library, Ritzville, 9:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. PDT;
• Telling Your Story: Five Secrets for Successful Career Growth and Advancement (Infopeople); 12:00 – 1:00 p.m. PDT;
• CultureGrams for Elementary Schools (ProQuest); 12:00 – 1:00 p.m. PDT: www.sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/PQ443;
• Common Core and ProQuest Resources (ProQuest); 2:00 – 3:00 p.m. PDT: www.sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/PQ444;

Thursday, October 11:

• Introduction to the New ProQuest Platform (ProQuest); 8:00 – 8:45 a.m. PDT: www.sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/PQ439;
• All You Need to Know about E-reader services in Your Library (WSL); Hal Holmes Community Center, Ellensburg, 9:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. PDT;
• Helping Patrons Find Legal Assistance in their Community: Online Referral Tools (Pro Bono Net); 10:00 – 11:15 a.m. PDT: www.sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/ProBono11Oct;
• Warm Up to Reading: Getting Kids Hooked on Books (Booklist); 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. PDT;
• Best Practices for Recruiting Online (VolunteerMatch); 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. PDT: www.sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/VMOnline;
• How to Approach a Foundation (GrantSpace); 12:00 – 1:00 p.m. PDT;

Friday, October 12:

• Healthcare 101: Cradle to Grave (O’Reilly Community); 10:00 – 11:30 a.m. PDT.

For more information and to register (for those not linked above), visit the WSL Training Calendar at www.sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/training.

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The Washington State Library has gone social! Friend/follow us at:

• Facebook: on.fb.me/FBWSL;
• Twitter: bit.ly/TwitWSL.

From the desk of Evan Robb

Gordon and June Thompson in goat-drawn carriage, Everson, Washington, 1928.

A new digital collection from the Whatcom County Library System is providing access to historical materials first gathered more than a decade ago.  From 1995 to 1999, a collaborative, citizen-led effort in Whatcom County sought to document the unique primary sources found in family collections throughout the Nooksack River Valley.  Known as the Whatcom Memories Photograph and Interview Project, and co-sponsored by the Lynden Pioneer Museum and the Whatcom Museum of History and Art, the project solicited materials from private collections, photographed and described them, and returned them to their owners.  Since that time, the materials have only been available to researchers visiting these institutions in person.

For its 2011-2012 Washington Rural Heritage grant project, the Everson McBeath Community Library (a branch of the Whatcom County Library System) digitized more than 500 items from this project.  Focusing on the communities of Everson, Nooksack, Clearbrook, Glen Echo, and Hopewell, the collection includes material from more than 40 Whatcom County families, many of whom were original pioneers and homesteaders in the area.

Collection highlights include:

• Nooksack River flood photos spanning several decades.
• Early homesteads and pioneer family portraits.
• Downtown business districts of Everson and Nooksack, including cannery and dairy industry photos.
• Lumber industry and loggers of the Nooksack Valley.
• A Y.M.C.A. ascent of Mount Baker.

Congratulations to the staff and volunteers at the Everson McBeath Community Library for making this grant project a resounding success.  According to local project manager, Susan Johns: “With the digitization of this collection and online access through the Washington State Library, it is now available to anyone, anywhere. This will be an incredible resource for all present and future generations.”

Y.M.C.A. ascent of Mount Baker, Deming Glacier in background.

The Everson McBeath Community Library joins more than 80 cultural institutions in 30 communities throughout the state that have digitized material with assistance from the Washington Rural Heritage initiative. Washington Rural Heritage sub-grants are made possible with Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) funding provided by the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services through the Washington State Library, a division of the Office of the Secretary of State.

For more information about Washington Rural Heritage, contact Evan Robb, Project Manager: (360)704-5228, [email protected].

Billie Legg picking apples in Manson, Washington, 1924 – click image to see larger version

From the desk of Evan Robb

Just as this year’s Washington apple crop is shaping up to be the second most productive season on record, a new Washington Rural Heritage collection documents our state’s long history of agricultural abundance in the heart of apple-growing country. The Foodways & Byways of North Central Washington Collection illustrates how the production, acquisition, and distribution of local food has played a central role in the history and development of North Central Washington.

For its 2011-2012 LSTA grant project, the North Central Regional Library (with a service area comprising one quarter of Washington State’s geography) partnered with the Wenatchee-based Initiative for Rural Innovation and Stewardship (IRIS). The partnership hosted five community-based digitization events at NCRL branches in early 2012, where more than 100 historic photographs from private collections and local historical societies were digitized for the collection.  Bringing together a wealth of unique material from Chelan, Douglas, Ferry, Grant, and Okanogan counties, the collection topics range from hunting & fishing, to the fruit and grain industries, to herding and range management.

Highlights include:

• Apple orchard and packing shed  photos from Manson, Washington, including the undeniably iconic photo shown above as well as another great image of the same apple picker taken that year.
• 1940s and 1950s-era photos of camping and fishing Lake Curlew in Ferry County. The trout fishing looks to have been excellent, not to mention the porcupine hunting (note: pan to the bottom of this image to see ‘Madilane and her porcupine, 1958’).
• Wheat planting and harvesting photos from Grant County, including this happy harvest photo and a 1908 family harvest photo from the Low Gap area.
• Hunting images from throughout the region. We especially like this one from Republic, Washington.
• Group portaits by Frank Matsura, still held in a private collection by a family member with deep roots in Okanogan County. This photo features Matsura himself, joining in on an Omak-area watermelon feast.

Baseball and sheep, Grant County, Washington – click image to see larger version

Congratulations to the North Central Washington Heritage partners–they join more than 80 cultural institutions in 30 communities throughout the state that have digitized material with assistance from the Washington Rural Heritage initiative. Washington Rural Heritage sub-grants are made possible with Library Services and Technology Act funding provided by the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services through the Washington State Library, a division of the Office of the Secretary of State.

For more information about Washington Rural Heritage, contact Evan Robb, Project Manager: (360)704-5228, [email protected].

Map of the Columbia Basin Irrigation System

From the desk of Evan Robb

Washington Rural Heritage is pleased to announce one of several new digital collections being published this month.  From southeast Washington’s Franklin County, the Connell Heritage Collection marks the completion of a year-long grant funded project led by the Connell Branch of Mid-Columbia Libraries. In partnership with the Connell Heritage Museum and the Franklin County Graphic, this collaborative effort resulted in the digitization of more than 200 unique resources documenting a century of the town’s history.

Among the materials that are now digitized and full-text-searchable for the first time is The Beginnings of Connell.  This local history document that the story of Palouse Junction, a remote point along the Northern Pacific Railroad line in the 1880s which would later be renamed as Connell.  Most of Connell’s growth came after 1900, as more settlers began to move into the area.  Otto Olds’ reminiscences, Memories of a Pioneer, describe a challenging existence for early homesteaders:

 “I don’t remember much that happened that first year, only that we got a house and barn built out of 1 by 12’s standing on end. Dad managed to plow about 15 acres with a walking plow or ‘foot burner’ as they are called, and planted it to oats in the fall. We had to sell one of the cows as it took most of the daylight to haul water and cut sagebrush to clear the land. Dad and Uncle Ed got a harvest job by driving to Lind, thirty miles away. Dad got $3.50 a day, himself and four mules, so was able to buy our winter groceries.  Dad had arrived in Washington with $1,400. With this he had been able to pay the filing fee on 160 acres—which was about the same as the government betting it was impossible to live on the homestead five years without starving to death. If you survived, the 160 acres were yours.”

Presbyterian Church in Connell, ca. 1917 – present day home of Connell Heritage Museum

Additional highlights from the Connell Heritage collection include:

• Photos of an August, 1907 cloudburst which sent a flash flood through town.
• Photos of February, 1956 flood, demonstrating the effect of a “pineapple express” event in this Eastern Washington community.
• Digitized negatives from the collection of the Franklin County Graphic, documenting community life in Connell across the decades.  Paisley shirts, black-rimmed glasses, and an “I Hate Girls” button all make an appearance on this photo of boys participating in a 1966 pie-eating contest.
• Photos from the Connell Heritage Museum, depicting the aftermath of destructive 1905 and 1909 fires in Connell.
• An early promotional map depicting areas to be irrigated as a result of the Columbia River Basin Project. This map includes canals serving Connell, Mesa, and areas east; these were never constructed.
• A series of street murals from present-day Connell.  These have been geo-referenced along with other materials in the collection, and can be explored on an interactive map.

Congratulations to the Connell Heritage partners—they join more than 80 cultural institutions in 30 communities throughout the state that have digitized material with assistance from the Washington Rural Heritage initiative. Washington Rural Heritage sub-grants are made possible with Library Services and Technology Act funding provided by the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services through the Washington State Library, a division of the Office of the Secretary of State.

Asotin County Library has recently added over 100 newly digitized photographs to the Asotin County Heritage collection with the assistance of a grant from the State Library’s Washington Rural Heritage initiative!

Oliver Brodock poses with his cat outside his service garage in the Silcott area of Asotin County, Washington, 1940.

Asotin County Library director Jennifer Ashby and cataloger/metadata specialist Marjean Riggers partnered with local resident Eva Lynn Thomson this year to digitize a portion of Thomson’s family collection, documenting the history of the Wilson Banner Ranch and the Silcott area along the Snake River just west of Clarkston, Washington.

In 2010, the Asotin County Library and the Asotin County Museum joined over 65 cultural institutions throughout the state that have digitized material with grants from the Washington Rural Heritage initiative. Grant funds are available  to public and tribal libraries serving populations under 25,000, funded through a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Packing crew at White Brothers & Crum Orchards, 1910.

If you have comments or additional information about any of the items in the Asotin County Heritage collection — or would like to contribute your own material for digitization — please contact the Asotin County Library.

And keep an eye out for a number of new Washington Rural Heritage projects to be published in the coming weeks! Find out more (or subscribe to this blog) right here.

It has already been a busy year for Washington Rural Heritage.

iris0105. Cataloging in progress.

In addition to launching a newly-designed website this spring (with upgrades to our server and content management system), we have improved our long-term digital preservation strategy to better protect our collections for future generations. We have also recently re-opened our metadata to outside harvesters (using best practices established by the Open Archives Initiative, or OAI), and we are currently in the process of contributing over 19,000 item-level records to OCLC’s WorldCat online catalog, enhanching discovery of WRH collections to library patrons across the world.

Congratulations are in order for the latest group of Washington libraries who will receive LSTA grants (FY 2012) through the Washington Rural Heritage initiative!

• Denny Ashby Public Library
• Nisqually Tribal Library
• Port Angeles Public Library, North Olympic Library System
• Ritzville Library District #2
• Roslyn Public Library
• Sedro-Woolley Public Library
• Sno-Isle Libraries

These organizations will spend the next year digitizing historically significant materials from their own holdings, the holdings of partnering heritage institutions, and in some cases, privately held collections. Read more on each project here.

Libraries currently participating in grant-funded digitization projects this year (FY 2011) will wrap up and launch their new collections or sub-collections in the coming weeks, including Asotin County Library, the Connell Branch of Mid-Columbia Libraries, Ellensburg Public Library, Odessa Public Library, North Central Regional Library, Roslyn Public Library, and the Everson Branch of Whatcom County Library System. Look for announcements here as these new projects come online.

Funds for Washington Rural Heritage are made available by a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. For more information, contact Evan Robb, Project Manager, (360) 704-5228.

The Odessa Public Library and the Odessa Historisches Museum have continued their partnership this year with a Washington Rural Heritage sub-grant to digitize a wealth of cultural heritage materials, including some cool multimedia. This slideshow interprets the story of the settling of the Odessa area by Germans from Russia, who came to eastern Washington starting in the late 19th century, as well as the difficult yet tenacious history of the Odessa Historical Society and Historisches Museum.

With an interest in photography, film and audio recording, the Historisches Museum’s founder, John E. Gahringer, MD, produced the slideshow in the 1980s from 272 images made on Kodachrome and Ektachrome 35mm slide film, and created an accompanying narrative on audio cassette with a synchronized cue track. The cue track allowed certain slide projectors, like the Telex Caramate 4000 shown in the short video below, to advance through slides automatically.

After a failed attempt to capture the essence of the (malfunctioning) Caramate projector for posterity, Washington State Library staff digitized the slideshow’s components and have reconstructed the presentation in video form. Watch the trailer above for a quick introduction, or see the full length presentation here.