Tunbridge is one of those quintessential Vermont towns, nestled amongst our state’s undulating green hills. Old barns, fields, cows, and historic homes along a winding narrow road lead to the relatively unchanged historic downtown of Tunbridge, where, in the valley below the town, the Tunbridge World’s Fairgrounds were home to the 2014 Vermont History Expo on June 21 and 22. Amid idyllic scenery and esteemed fellow exhibitors (all 160 of them!), we hosted an exhibit in Floral Hall.
Over the course of two days, we had the opportunity to meet hundreds of people from Vermont and beyond–many of whom had not yet heard of the project and what we had to offer. It was therefore a weekend full of discoveries!
Erenst Anip, Project Librarian, with our exhibit.
Particularly helpful was our laptop with Chronicling America set up. Visitors tested out keywords with the guidance of VTDNP team members. There were some amazing newspaper finds, particularly in regard to genealogy. One family discovered an obituary with some confirming information on a relative who moved from Vermont to Kansas in the time of John Brown and Bleeding Kansas. Stay tuned for more stories! (Read our post on genealogy search strategies.)
With maple creemee in hand, Karyn Norwood, our newsgirl, helps a visitor navigate Chronicling America in search of an ancestor. Seems she had some success!
Our booth featured an exhibit entitled, Expressions: The Newspaper Masthead in Vermont Newspapers between 1836-1922, which took a particular look at the Cronaca Sovverisiva’s masthead artist, Carlos Abate, and displayed other interesting masthead designs from Vermont newspapers. View mastheads on our Flickr account.
Click to enlarge the exhibit panel.Click to enlarge the exhibit panel.
In addition to the main exhibit, we challenged visitors with a guessing game featuring mystery toy advertisements from the turn of the twentieth century. It was a lot of fun, and every participant received some candy and a bookmark! Think you’d like to give it a try? Try our online version!
Finally, thanks to our volunteers who helped with manning the booth: Tom McMurdo and Mary VanBuren Swasey. We couldn’t have done it without you!! Many thanks to the Vermont Historical Society for organizing such an impressive History Expo. Additional thanks to Karen Lane of the Aldrich Public Library and Paul Heller, local historian and author, for their help with the Cronaca Sovversiva research and images.
Karyn Norwood, Digital Support Specialist, was a newsgirl for the weekend, delivering the headlines from the 1800s and early 1900s to the public!
It was an incredible weekend of Vermont history; we are so happy to have been a part of it. We can’t wait for the 2016 History Expo!
A view of Floral Hall (where VTDNP had our exhibit) and the gazebo, where musicians played music from the past and present.
Extra! Extra! Read, watch, and view more about VTDNP at the Expo:
More photos from the weekend are available on our Flickr account.
Good news everyone!
18,000 more pages of Vermont newspapers were just added to Chronicling America! Currently, there are 224,000 pages (52 titles, 1 in French, 1 in Italian) of Vermont newspapers in Chronicling America. The latest addition includes the following titles (click on the masthead or text to access the newspaper):
VTDNP participated at the 120th Annual Vermont Library Conference, Story Time: Advocate, Celebrate, and Be Heard, on May 20th, 2014 from 9:00 am to 5:30 pm at St. Michael’s College in Colchester. We had a booth and poster presentation setup for the event. We also came with handouts, pamphlets, bookmarks, and candies. We talked to many librarians about the (free) primary resources offered through our project at ChroniclingAmerica.com.
Inspired by Adventure Time. Poster designed by Clay Lewis.VTDNP booth, a preview of what’s installed for Vermont History Expo in a month!Karyn in action, talking with conference attendance.” This is VTDNP: Providing Digital Access to Vermont Newspapers 1836-1922″ Short description: This poster will provide an overview of the Vermont Digital Newspaper Project/VTDNP. This project, part of a larger national initiative, provides free digital access to Vermont newspapers between 1836 and 1922. Presenter: Erenst Anip, Library Assistant Professor, Bailey/Howe Library, University of Vermont Karyn Norwood, Digital Support Specialist, Bailey/Howe Library, University of VermontVTDNP poster among other poster presentations
PS: apologies for some low-res photos as they were taken with different gadgets at various quality settings.
On Friday 4/18, Karyn Norwood and Erenst Anip visited The Woodstock Historical Society to attend Exhibit Workshop organized by the Vermont Historical Society. They offered five sessions of this workshop in Bennington, Middlebury, Barre, Woodstock, and Brownington. These full day sessions are free of charge thanks to a grant from the Patrick Foundation and each are followed by a reception for Cultural Heritage Professionals. Continue reading Preparing for the Vermont History Expo 2014→