Tag Archives: chronicling america

We’ll be at the Dynamic Landscapes K-12 Edtech Conference, Will You?

April 2, 2015 VTDNP

We’re excited to be leading a workshop at the annual Vermont K-12 Edtech Conference at Champlain College in Burlington on May 21st and 22nd! This year’s theme is Dynamic Landscapes: Do, Make, and Create! The two-day conference is sponsored by VITA-Learn, the VSLA (Vermont State Library Association) and the VT AOE (Agency of Education), and is open to Vermont teachers, librarians, administrators, and tech specialists in K-12 schools.

We’ll be speaking on how to use historic newspaper content from Chronicling America in the classroom on Thursday, May 21st at 11 am (D1 Thursday Session 2A). To learn more about our talk and sign-up for our session (if you’re already registered), visit the session website.

For information on the conference and how to register, visit the Dynamic Landscapes website. Hope to see you there!

Visit our For Educators page to download lessons, view tutorials and more!

The End of the World was almost Today in 1843 and 1844: the Failed Prophesies of the Millerites

March 21, 2015 VTDNP

The Burlington Free Press republished an article on William Miller from the Bennington Banner on February 17, 1843, introducing it with a heavy dose of skepticism:

“It is the latest news from this monomaniac and his whereabouts…This gentleman arrived in this village [Bennington], and commenced a course of lectures on his favorite and celebrated theme–the Destruction of the World by Fire in A.D. 1843…during his first lecture he gave substantially the following description of the MANNER of the Second Advent: ‘A small bright spot will first appear in the east, which will gradually expand as it approaches the earth…At the sound of a trumpet (or some other signal) the bright spot having gradually illuminated the whole heavens, the righteous dead shall rise from their resting places–and the risen and living saints shall together be caught up…the wicked burned up.'”

Vermont transplant, Rev. William Miller (1782-1849), was a notable Baptist preacher during the Second Great Awakening in the first half of the 19th century. Born in Pittsfield, Mass., he moved with his family shortly thereafter at the age of four to Poultney, Vt. In the 1830s he rose in prominence for his views on the impeding Second Advent of Christ (a day in Christian teachings when Christ will return again and take believers up to heaven, leaving all else on earth to burn) nationwide after partnering with Joshua V. Himes, a well-known Boston Baptist minister. Pamphlets, periodicals, speeches, and newspapers largely assisted in the spread of his radical views. Continue reading The End of the World was almost Today in 1843 and 1844: the Failed Prophesies of the Millerites →

Recap: February Outreach in Indonesia

March 18, 2015 VTDNP

Last month, our project librarian, Erenst Anip, traveled to the infinitely warmer climate of Jakarta, Indonesia, where he gave two presentations regarding newspaper digitization and outreach hosted the US Embassy in Jakarta on the 18th and 19th of February.

IMG_20150217_133243 — Presenter’s view before ‘”Using Social Media for Library Outreach” talk at Universitas Indonesia in Depok on February 17.

Continue reading Recap: February Outreach in Indonesia →

Women’s History as it Happened, in the News

March 12, 2015 VTDNP

It’s Women’s History Month; thus an appropriate time to reflect on women in history as seen in newspapers. Chronicling America‘s newspapers from 1836-1922 help capture an integral period of time in the women’s history: here we see the growing effort for suffrage and equal rights, the passage of the 19th Amendment, and the emergence of such pioneering women as Clara Barton, Susan B. Anthony, Dorothy Dix, and so many more.

The Topics page on Chronicling America contains a number of intriguing women’s history topics, from developments in women’s sporting fashion to Clara Barton’s founding of the American Red Cross; see them below:

durkeebloomer — “Miss Jennie Durkee, the original bloomer girl” -Middlebury Register, April 2, 1897

Happy searching!

To learn more specifically about Vermont women in history, visit the Vermont Historical Society’s “Vermont Women in History” database.

‪#‎WomenYouShouldKnow‬

Recap: Genealogy Workshop @ the Vermont Genealogy Library

March 9, 2015 VTDNP

Pictured: Erenst Anip, Project Librarian, introducing VTDNP and Chronicling America.

On an almost warm, partially sunny morning this past Saturday, March 7, at 10:30 am, the Vermont Digital Newspaper Project gave a presentation on how to use Chronicling America for genealogy research to an audience of near fifty people at the Vermont Genealogy Library in Fort Ethan Allen.

In the class, we addressed how VTDNP digitizes and selects content, how to search on Chronicling America, and offered some tips and tricks on how to effectively find information about relatives on Chronicling America.

Pictured: Karyn Norwood, Digital Support Specialist, talking about the basics of Chronicling America.

We are very grateful to the Vermont Genealogy Library for the opportunity to present at their facility!

The PowerPoint, with audio, will be posted on our website and slideshare account soon. We’ll also have a brochure posted on how to conduct genealogy research with historic newspapers on Chronicling America , as well, for free download.

Visit the Vermont Genealogy Library’s website to learn more about what they offer in regard to genealogy research.

Visit our Genealogy section to learn more about how to research ancestors using Chronicling America.

As always, happy searching!