Eddy County Museum Receives Grants for Archival Project
December 5th, 2013 – The Eddy County Museum and Historical Society has received grant funding from the State Historical Society of North Dakota (SHSND) and Otter Tail Power Company for its Collections Documentation archival project. The $3000 received from the SHSND, using funds appropriated by the North Dakota Legislature, comprises roughly half of the expected project cost.
The Museum’s Collections Documentation project entails the individual cataloging of each artifact, document, and photo in the Museum’s collection, estimated to be in the thousands of items. The items are entered one-by-one into a computer software program, with tags and keywords regarding its type, origins, use, condition, donor information, and any related items in the collection. The complete catalog will then be searchable by many different data types, such as family names, years, and subject matter.
At present, the Museum’s inventory is kept in hand-written ledgers, with items missing and many incomplete entries. Museum president Jessica Dillon explains, “Going through our collection item by item is critical not just for record-keeping and insurance purposes, but also to record and preserve the history of the items, as well as for use as a research tool. A guest will be able to walk in, search their family name, and find out if we have any items, photos, and documents related to their own ancestry at the click of a button.”
The project is underway now, with Dillon serving as part-time archivist. Considering that access to the Museum buildings is limited during the winter months, the project is expected to be completed by summer of 2015. At that time, the Museum plans to seek additional funding to make the collection catalog available online.
The Eddy County Museum is open Sundays from 1-4 p.m. between Memorial Day and Labor Day, and for tours by appointment. Please contact Jessica at 947-2205 with any questions, and find the Eddy County Museum on Facebook for photos and updates.