Archive for the ‘Digitization Services’ Category
Legends of Dutchess County, NY: Digitized Ancient Documents Awaken Stories of the Past
In August 1759, Cornelius Jansen, an enslaved man, presented manumission papers to a Dutchess County court hoping the words would compel the court to grant his freedom from slavery. What makes this case different from so many others? Cornelius’ white father and legal “owner,” Francis Jansen, wrote the papers petitioning for his son’s freedom, completing them with the family seal. The petition was successful; Cornelius was granted freedom. Cornelius’ story – and many others from the 18th century Hudson Valley…
Patrick Hill’s Digitization Playbook
Vince Lombardi. Coach from Cheers. Patrick Hill. What do these people have in common? They’re born to coach a team (or, in the case of Cheers, a bar full of Bostonians. Same thing, right?). In just nine months as Director of Crowley Imaging Services (Crowley), Patrick Hill has utilized his leadership, business and IT experiences to enhance the productivity and profitability of Crowley’s award-winning digitization service bureau. Coming into the fourth quarter of his first year, I sat with Hill…
It’s MayDay: Are Your Archives Safe?
Search “May Day” on the internet and you’ll find descriptions of centuries of Spring celebrations (including a peculiar little outdoor soiree where cattle had to jump over fire to protect their milk from being stolen by fairies), the canonization of Saint Walpurga, the crowning of Queen Mary, the maypole, International Workers’ Day and a myriad of other associations that can lead to a lost hour (or more) of trivia pursuit. Put the words “MayDay” together and in the space…
Archiving “The Greatest”: Digitizing Rare History for the Muhammad Ali Center
In a time when the civil rights movement was at its peak and racial divides spread deep and wide, one African American teen and eleven established white businessmen joined together for the sake of success, boxing and the future of “The Greatest,” Muhammad Ali. In today’s blog, we’re combining history and present day to show how knowledgeable teams (in this case, the Louisville Sponsoring Group and The Crowley Company) can provide already successful entities (Muhammad Ali and the Muhammad Ali…
Presidential Material?
Like many of us, I had a home office that was out of control. Making good on one of my New Year’s resolutions – pretty much a first for me – last week I pulled paper shredder and wastebasket close and got down to it. The goal was to weed out the necessary from the unnecessary, keeping only what I needed for today and for the personal archives I thought might be meaningful to future generations – books, pictures, writings…
The Gift of Digitization
With Thanksgiving under my belt (in more ways than one), I’m jumping into the holiday season with two feet. For myself and others across the globe, the next few weeks will be spent combing through aisles of products and relentlessly searching online for the perfect holiday gifts. During my exhaustive search for presents that are both practical and meaningful, I was reminded of a few Crowley clients that gave the thoughtful and useful gift of digitization in the forms of…
Celebrating American Archives
October is officially American Archives month and we’ve been so busy with the day-to-day of digitizing collections, pairing scanners to end-users and attending trade shows that we find the month quickly escaping. So we’re going to stop, take a breath and celebrate just a few of the American archives and their owners and industries that we’ve had the pleasure to work with over the past twelve months. From a First Lady (Typefaces, Animal Rights and the “It” Girl) to Pro…
Forever Young: Preserving Oak Hill Cemetery Lot and Stereoscopic Cards through Digitization
Cemeteries have so much more to offer than just an eternal resting place. They provide insight into history, reveal family ties long forgotten, remind us of the importance of “the dash” and inspire future stories. The purpose of a cemetery begins long before death and continues long after. Within the iron gates of Oak Hill Cemetery (OHC) in the nation’s capital, this purpose is being furthered with the digitization of 170 years of history documented on paper, on cards, in…
Endless Love: Digitizing the Herbst Love Letters
A Tale of Preservation and Family in Honor of National Grandparent’s Day. The letters of Gene and Margaret (Maggie) Herbst have traveled far and wide in the name of love. Through 250 handwritten letters, the couple shared tales of their adolescence, war, happiness and longing. In more recent years, the letters have helped their grandson Eric form a relationship with the grandfather he never met. In celebration of National Grandparent’s Day, The Crowley Company is sharing the story of the cherished…
Celebrating Chip Clark: Digitizing Natural History’s Famed Photographer
Today would have been Chip Clark’s 71st birthday. Born on August 20, 1947, his name will bring a smile to, or ring a bell with, anyone in the world of museum photography. For 37 years, Clark served as a photographer at The Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History (NMNH). No matter which world you orbit, the chances are more than good that you’ve seen at least one photo from his vast body of work. Recently, several employees of The…