ABOUT THE OHIO MEMORY PROJECT
NOTE: Ohio Memory recently upgraded to a new site! The new site contains all of the old images, as well as nearly 50,000 new items. To access the old site, including your saved "My Scrapbooks" go to http://www.ohiomemory.org/index.html
Ohio Memory Project
Phone: (614) 297-2576
Fax: (614) 297-2546
ohiomemory@ohiohistory.org
Sign up for the Ohio Memory Project Listserv
The mission of the Ohio Memory Project is to provide access to historical treasures of
Background of the Ohio Memory Project
The Ohio Historical Records Advisory Board (OHRAB) conceived the idea for the Ohio Memory project in 1995. Envisioned as a celebration of state history and a virtual repository of be one of several products. Others included a print publication, educational materials to encourage classroom use of archival collections, and modest grants to help archives, libraries, and historical societies to process and catalog their buried treasures--valuable primary sources that are currently unknown or inaccessible. Between 1995 and 2000, the Ohio Historical Society worked with OHRAB, the State Library of Ohio, the Ohio Public Library Information Network (OPLIN), and the Ohio Library Council to refine the concept and secure funding for the project. In February 2000, OPLIN approved a grant of $500,000 to the Ohio Historical Society to launch the first phase of the Ohio Memory Project.
The first phase concluded in June 2002. During the two-year effort, more than 1,000 collections from more than 250 institutions were selected for inclusion in the scrapbook. More than 13,487 digital images were created and made available via the website at http://www.ohiomemory.org/index.html. Project staff created many of those images, although some collections were digitized by submitting repositories. Collections in the scrapbook represent a diversity of formats, subjects, time periods, and geographic areas. However, only items created before 1903 were accepted during Phase 1.
The Ohio Historical Society is able to continue the Ohio Memory Project through
Online Scrapbook
In March 2002, at a ceremony held at the Ohio Statehouse, First Lady of Ohio Mrs. Hope Taft officially opened the Ohio Memory Online Scrapbook. It brought together historical materials from archives, museums, libraries, and historical societies around the state to create a large collection of primary source material, both print and three-dimensional. Acting as a single point of access to historical materials of multiple types from a variety of institutions, the site highlights connections between collections, providing more comprehensive coverage of the state's history than any single institution could. The scrapbook identifies hidden treasures that were previously inaccessible, raises awareness of state and local history, encourages teaching and study of
Staff of the Ohio Memory Project
Aaron O'Donovan is
the Assistant Curator of Digital Collections at the Ohio Historical
Society. He began his work at the Ohio Historical Society as a
practicum student working on the World War II Oral Histories video
collection. Aaron holds a BA in Sociology from The Ohio State
University and a MLIS from Kent State University. Phone: (614)
297-2558. E-mail: aodonovan@ohiohistory.org.
Angela O’Neal is the manager of Information Technology at the Ohio Historical Society. She oversees Ohio Memory, a collaborative digital library that includes 353 libraries, historical societies and museums in Ohio and the Ohio Newspaper Digitization Project, Ohio’s contribution to Chronicling America. She is the Past-President of the Society of Ohio Archivists and has published articles on
Jenni Salamon is the Quality Control Technician for the Ohio Newspaper Digitization Project and a Reference Assistant in Research Services at the Ohio Historical Society. Jenni started at OHS as a Digital Projects volunteer and intern, helping to create metadata for several collections in Ohio Memory. Jenni has a B.A. in English from Ohio University and will be receiving her M.L.I.S. from Kent State University in May 2010. Phone: (614) 297-2579. E-mail: jsalamon@ohiohistory.org.
Eric W. Schnittke is the coordinator for the Ohio Newspaper Digitization Project. Eric began his work at the Ohio Historical Society during his undergraduate education at The Ohio State University, serving as an intern with the Remarkable Ohio project. Upon graduating with his BA in history, Eric began full time work as the Ohio Historical Markers Coordinator. Eric went on to receive his MLIS from the