The Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County has been awarded a grant of $189,464 from the Institute of Museum and Library Services ($56,600 from the Ohio Public Library Information Network and $132,864 in federal IMLS Library Services and Technology Act funds from the State Library of Ohio) to upgrade digitization software and equipment.
While the Public Library has been digitizing material since 2007, this grant will allow for the purchase of new, more advanced equipment, which will improve images and expand scanning capabilities.
The Library, one of four Ohio libraries to receive LSTA funds for this project, will collaborate with the Cleveland Public Library, Columbus Metropolitan Library, and Toledo-Lucas County Public Library to develop a statewide program for digitizing and accessing materials relative to local and state importance. These four hub libraries will also reach out to other libraries and museums with limited digitization capabilities to enhance their own digitization efforts.
"Our Library has worked for the past seven years to create digital versions of important and rare documents for researchers. We are excited that with this grant and our partner libraries, the amount and diversity of available documents will significantly expand and our ability to protect locally important historical documents will be greatly increased," said Kimber Fender, Eva Jane Romaine Coombe Director of the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County.
“Through the process of digitization, the Library has been able to share treasures from its own collection, and we look forward to offering further digitization support to the community. More advanced equipment improves the services we can offer and will expand the reach of local collections to customers everywhere,” says Katrina Marshall, Digital Services Manager.
The Library’s Panorama of 1848 is one example of how digitization has conserved historical images and documents. This digital display combines the superior clarity of daguerreotypes, made from the first practical method of photography, with 21st-century technology, making it possible to not only enlarge the Cincinnati Panorama of 1848 but also see details that even the photographers could not have seen. The Library’s digital collection, including the complete Panorama of 1848, can be viewed at http://virtuallibrary.chpl.org/virtuallibrary/.
The installation of digitization equipment will begin in the spring and a complete launch of the new digitization services is expected by late summer.
