Push to preserve historical documents with scanning services ongoing
More government entities across the U.S. are now taking advantage of the technological capabilities available to make sure they can preserve older documents. This includes efforts on the part of everyone from big cities, small towns, states and counties to scan important documents from their past.
In Suwannee County, Florida, the clerk's office is in the process of scanning many of the county's historical documents in color, with an eye toward maximum readability and preserving the "look" of the original, according to the Suwannee Democrat. Already, the images of both old photos and actual documents stored in the clerk's document management system take up more than 1.5 terabytes. Whenever possible, it also tries to preserve the documents themselves in addition to creating a digital or physical copy.
A little outreach
As part of its effort to preserve more documents in and around the county, the clerk's office is trying to educate residents about the ways in which they can most easily preserve their own important documents, especially when it comes to protecting documents against that significant Florida humidity, which can age any paper rapidly, the report said. Writing for the newspaper, Eric Musgrove of the county clerk's office advised residents to keep their important documents out of extreme heat, humid spaces, and light.
Another county effort
Meanwhile, in Bergen County, New Jersey, there is also an effort to start scanning and preserving historical documents dating back to the late 1600s, according to NorthJersey.com. These include old maps printed on deerskin, election results, and more. Many of the documents now being scanned were put into storage more than a century ago and largely left untouched. Now, county officials want them digitized so they can be more broadly available to the public.
"Part of the job of the county clerk is to preserve the records, but also share those records," Bergen County clerk John Hogan told the newspaper. "There's some significant stuff … and I think it adds to the community pride."
The more municipal government entities undertake these efforts at historical document scanning, the better off they will be when it comes to preserving their local past in perpetuity for future generations.
