BPL « News & Announcements – Digital Commonwealth

Path of Life I M. C. Escher (1898-1972). Prints and Drawings (BPL)

This month, the Boston Public Library (BPL) added 36 items from its M.C. Escher prints and drawings collection. It also happens that this month the Museum of Fine Arts opened an exhibit of M.C. Escher prints. Great minds really do think alike.

In addition, the BPL added items to six existing collections as well as lithographs, etchings and drawings of James McNeill Whistler, a Commonwealth-born artist most famous for his mother’s portrait.

The Leicester Public Library has uploaded a collection of architectural drawings while the Atwood House Museum of the Chatham Historical Society and the Jamaica Plain Historical Society have added new items to existing collection.

It appears winter is not done with us yet, so let the wonders on Digital Commonwealth warm your day and inspire your spirit.

Atwood House Museum of the Chatham Historical Society
Nautical Chart Collection of the Chatham Historical Society – 49 items added to existing collection

Boston Public Library

Boston Printmakers Collection – 110 items added to existing collection

Colonial and Revolutionary Boston (Collection of Distinction) – 7 items added to existing

collection

Incunabula (Collection of Distinction) – 2 items added to existing collection

James McNeill Whistler (1834-1903). Lithographs, Etchings, and Drawings – 239 items

M.C. Escher (1898-1972). Prints and Drawings – 87 items

Medieval and Early Renaissance Manuscripts (Collection of Distinction) – 36 items added to existing collection

Paintings and Fine Arts Collection at the Boston Public Library – 1 item added to existing collection

Stereograph Collection – 1 item added to existing collection

Jamaica Plain Historical Society

James Michael Curley Negatives – 71 items added to existing collection

Leicester Public Library

Leicester Public Library Architectural Drawings c. 1895 – 19 items

The observatory, Smith College, Northampton, Mass. from Anna Maria College Blumsack Travel Postcards

Have you kept your New Year’s resolution to digitize your historical treasures? These institutions did. Anna Maria College’s The Travel Postcards of Charles Bumsack Collection includes this view of Smith College’s Observatory (left). If you explore more, you’ll also find views of the Crab, Dumbbell and Horsehead Nebulae. I kid you not.

If whimsy is not your cup of tea, the BPL has added some significant correspondence collections and Barre Historical Society has added maps. (See example below.) Wilbraham Public Library chips in some photographs of the Glendale section of town while the Center for the History of Medicine (Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine) has added prints, sculptures, photos and more in its six collections.

Earlier this month Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow, so we have six more weeks of winter. Plenty of time to visit all these great collections.

Anna Maria College

Travel Postcards of Charles Blumsack – 120 items

Barre Historical Society

Barre Historical Society Map Collection – 11 items

Boston Public Library

Alphonse Legros (1837-1911). Prints and Drawings – 1943 items added to existing collection John Brown: Correspondence relating to John Brown and the raid on Harpers Ferry, West Virginia – 227 items
Sophia Hawthorne correspondence with James and Annie Fields, 1851-1904 – 252 items

Center for the History of Medicine (Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine)

Harvested 6 collections – 3623 items

Wilbraham Public Library

Glendale Collection – 44 items

Frozen fountain on the Common, from the Stereo Slide Collection of the Lawrence Public Library — Frozen fountain on the Common from the Stereo Slide Collection of the Lawrence Public Library

Admit it. You took it easy last month. After exams or while planning office parties, you let some things slide. The digitization team working on the Lawrence Public Library collections added twenty three collections in December: 23. No slackers there. Take the Stereo Slide Collection for example. It contains 108 items, including the Frozen Fountain on the Common slide (Left). Is it too soon after our own deep freeze to appreciate this icy monument?

Maybe you would find the variety of the Hamilton Historical Society’s collection of photos of parades, historic houses, town celebrations and prominent citizens cozier. For Civil War students, we have letters from the Jubb brothers courtesy of the J. V. Fletcher Library in Westford. As always, we have maps. December saw the Leventhal Map Center add yet more to their collection while the Wilbraham Library’s Maps Collection included the Hampden and Hampshire highway map below.

Boston Public Library

Norman B. Leventhal Map Center Collection – 233 items added to existing collection

Hamilton Historical Society

Hamilton Historical Society Collection – 2,408 items

J. V. Fletcher Library

Jubb Brothers Civil War Letters – 83 items

Lawrence Public Library

Advertisements – 10 items
Aerial Photograph – 1 item
Arlington Mills – 8 items
Art Work of Lawrence and Vicinity Photograph Collection – 19 items
Boston Bridge Works – 8 items
David Burke – 1 item
Forrest C. Hinckley Photograph Collection – 11 items
Gary Keating – 1 item
George H. Farrell Photograph – 1 item

Highway map, Hampden and Hampshire counties, Mass. from the Wilbraham Library Maps Collection

John Deacy Photograph – 1 item
John J. Murphy – 1 item
John McCann Photograph Collection – 5 items
Kenneth Kerwin Photographs – 2 items
Lawrence City Mission – 1 item
Lawrence, Mass. School Committee – 1 item
Massachusetts Commandery of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States – 1 item
Massachusetts Legislature 1888 25th Anniversary Reunion – 1 item
Massachusetts National Guard – 1 item
Ora Beal Photographs – 3 items
Rendle Homestead – 1 item
St. Patrick’s School Class of 1931 – 1 item
Stereo Slide Collection – 108 items
United Textile Workers of America, Local 1113, Arlington Mills – 16 items

Wilbraham Public Library

Wilbraham Library Maps Collection – 21 items

USS Constitution Museum

War of 1812 Collection – 87 items added to existing collection

If you were a little sad to see your feathered friends head south last month, take a gander (pun intended) at the John James Audubon The Birds of America drawings digitized by the Boston Public Library in November. You won’t want to miss the weirdly wonderful Roseate Spoonbill below:

Roseate spoonbill from the Boston Public Library's The Birds of America collection — Roseate spoonbill from the Boston Public Library’s The Birds of America collection

There is, once again, something for everyone in this past month’s additions: large collections and small; photos, letters, music; artwork, nature, history. You want it? Digital Commonwealth’s got it! Special mention has to go to the Massachusetts Horticultural Society Library’s Edward Hale Lincoln Collection of flora in nature photographs. The photos are in black and white, but are so sharp and clear that winter weary Bay Staters may find inspiration for their spring gardens in these photos. Never ask me to choose a favorite orchid, but the nearby Cattleya Snow Queen seems an appropriate choice for a December post. And if you need some color, try Mass Hort’s previously digitized Botanical Prints collection. Gorgeous, even to us non-gardeners.

Cattleya Snow Queen from the Massachusetts Horticultural Society Library's Edwin Hale Lincoln Collection — Cattleya Snow Queen from the Massachusetts Horticultural Society Library’s Edwin Hale Lincoln Collection

Berkley Public Library
Berkley Public Library Local History – 1 item

Boston College
15 collections – 2,985 items (Re-harvested; numbers for new items only)

Boston Public Library
The Birds of America: From Original Drawings by John James Audubon – 547 items
James McBey (1883-1959). Prints and Drawings – 1,065 items
Medieval and Early Renaissance Manuscripts – 1 item added to existing collection

Framingham State University
Henry Whittemore Library – 8 collections, 824 records

Hingham Public Library
Governor John D. Long Letters – 151 items

Jamaica Plain Historical Society
Jamaica Plain Historical Society Photo Gallery – 25 items added to existing collection

Lee Library Association
Lee Library Historical Photograph Collection – 1,027 items

Massachusetts Horticultural Society Library
Edwin Hale Lincoln Collection – 1,298 items

Phillips Academy Andover
Abbot Academy Photographs – 1,249 items added to existing collection

Weymouth Public Libraries, Tufts Library
Bates-Weston-Chapman Collection – 2 items added to existing collection
Civil War Personal Papers and Currency – 3 items added to existing collection
Fifield Family Collection – 23 items added to existing collection
Fifield Music Collection – 1 item
Pamphlet Collection – 1 item added to existing collection
Weymouth Map Collection – 3 items

Charleston, SC April 1865 from The Medford Historical Society & Museum — Charleston, SC April 1865, from The Medford Historical Society & Museum

As we pack away the ghosts and goblins of Halloween and prepare for Thanksgiving, let us give thanks:

…to the Annisquam Historical Society for sharing a lovely sketch of the I Am Here schooner amongst its 86 historical documents.
…to the Boston Public Library – and especially to the Leventhal Map Center – for continuing to add too many wonderful items to mention individually.
…to the Medford Historical Society & Museum for adding a superb collection of Civil War photographs, ranging from cartes de visites to battle scenes to fortifications to the haunting photo of a devastated Charleston, S.C. (Left)
…to the Sharon Public Library for a wonderful variety of photos, including photos taken after the Blizzard of ’78. “Foot of my driveway” is exactly the kind of titles I give my photos, but the Cobb’s Corner photos give a better idea of the scale. (Below)

Take a look and let us know what you’re thankful for.

Annisquam Historical Society

Annisquam Historical Society’s Collection of Historical Documents – 86 items

Cobb's Corner, Sharon, February 8, 1978>, from the Sharon Public Library Photo Collection — Cobb’s Corner, Sharon, February 8, 1978>, from the Sharon Public Library Photo Collection

Boston Public Library

Early English Printers – 1 item

Incunabula (Collection of Distinction) – 1 item added to an existing collection

Medieval and Early Renaissance Manuscripts (Collection of Distinction) – 18 items added to an existing collection

Norman B. Leventhal Map Center Collection – 728 items added to an existing collection

Medford Historical Society & Museum

The Medford Historical Society Civil War Photograph Collection – 742 items

Sharon Public Library

Sharon Public Library Photo Collection – 155 items

World Armenian Congress from the Project SAVE Archives Banquet and Panoramic Photo Collection

Just in time for Armenian Independence Day on September 21, Project SAVE Archives Banquet and Panoramic Photo Collection added 222 items to Digital Commonwealth – including the nearby photo of the World Armenian Congress held at New York’s Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. The place was packed! I honestly don’t know how those people got served.

In addition, Needham Free Public Library has added over 3,000 house photos while Wellesley Free Library and Boston Public Library added more historical maps.

Boston Public Library

Norman B. Leventhal Map Center Collection – 5 items added to existing collection

Paintings and Fine Arts Collection – 5 items

Needham Free Public Library

Needham Historical House Collection – 3,199 items

Project SAVE Armenian Photograph Archives

Project SAVE Archives Banquet and Panoramic Photo Collection – 222 items

Wellesley Free Library

Wellesley Free Library Local Historical Maps – 19 items

105 State Street, Boston from the Public Works Department Photographs collection

Strike up the band, fire the confetti cannon and release the balloons! Digital Commonwealth is celebrating the half million item mark. Thanks, in part, to the large and small collections below, Digital Commonwealth by the end of August was able to offer access to 529, 444 items.

On August 23, you could commemorate the 90^th anniversary of Sacco and Vanzetti’s execution by perusing the 285 additional items added to the Boston Public Library’s Sacco-Vanzetti Defense Committee Collection.

Or you could remember your summer vacation trips around Massachusetts by comparing your GPS maps to the more than 400 1794 town plans in the Massachusetts Archives’ Town Plan Collection. Wait, school is starting and your brain is working and you know Massachusetts only has 351 cities and towns. What gives? In 1794, Massachusetts still had a province in what is now Maine, so be careful when you look for Falmouth. There are two of them.

Or you could play the “then and now” game with the City of Boston Archives Public Works Department Photographs Collection, one of twenty and including over 1,000 photos by itself. My how you’ve changed, 105 State Street.

So whether you are partial to the early daguerreotypes included in Historic Newton’s collection or the Town of Rockport’s maps, there’s something for everyone in the 85 collections added in August or the over half million total items on Digital Commonwealth. Enjoy!

Boston Public Library

Medieval and Early Renaissance Manuscripts (Collection of Distinction) – 3 items added to existing collection

Sacco-Vanzetti Defense Committee (Collection of Distinction) – 285 items added to existing collection

Sir Muirhead Bone (1876-1953). Prints, Drawings, and Paintings – 577 items

Huntington family from the Historic Newton Early Photograph collection

Cape Cod Community College

Cape Cod Association Collection, 1851-1969 – 80 items

City of Boston Archives

20 collections – 3,750 records harvested

Historic Newton

Historic Newton Early Photograph Collection – 279 items

Plan of Greenwich from the Mass. Archives Town Plans, 1794 collection

Massachusetts Archives

Town plans, 1794 – 403 items

Noble & Cooley Center for Historic Preservation

Laws, Regulations and Commerce Collection – 3 items

NCCHP Museum Collection – 2 items

Noble & Cooley Business Correspondence Collection – 2 items

Noble & Cooley Employee Collection – 7 items

Trade Catalog Collection – 4 items

Town of Rockport

Rockport Town Clerk, Street, Roads and Maps – 228 items

University of Massachusetts Amherst Libraries Special Collections and University Archives

53 collections – 26,759 records re-harvested

Barre High School Spring '87 from the Barre Class Photos Collection — Barre High School Spring ’87 from the Barre Class Photos Collection

June is a traditional month for saying good bye to school friends and beginning on new and unknown paths. We are pleased to highlight this month’s addition of Class Photos from Barre High School provided by the Barre Historical Society, including the 130-year-old photo to the right. The Boston Public Library continues to add to established collections, which may see more use during the school year when old school friends meet again.

June is also Pride Month and the Digital Transgender Archive has uploaded seventy-seven (yes, 77!) new collections. I can’t list them all, so follow the link and explore the various paths to a history that may be new and unknown to you.

Whatever path you choose, wherever you wind up, may your journey begin with a visit to the Digital Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Barre Historical Society

Barre Class Photos – 64 items

Boston Public Library

Transgender symbol pin from the Digital Transgender Archive

Anti-Slavery Collection -2,178 items added to existing collection

Norman B. Leventhal Map Center Collection – 10 items added to existing collection

Shakespeare Collection – 101 items added to existing collection

Digital Transgender Archive

Seventy-seven collections – 1,587 items harvested

"The works of Geoffrey Chaucer," from Early, Rare, and Exceptional Items from Special Collection, Rare Books. — “The works of Geoffrey Chaucer,” from Early, Rare, and Exceptional Items from Special Collection, Rare Books.

This month focused mostly on getting Northeastern University Library’s collections harvested. There are now 17 new collections from them, including a really wide variety of content! Don’t miss that, or any of the beautiful new items from the BPL’s collections.

Boston Public Library

Early, Rare, and Exceptional Items from Special Collections, Rare Books – 6 items

Norman B. Leventhal Map Center Collection – 879 items added to existing collection

Northeastern University

Carmen A. Pola Papers – 318 items

Center for Spirituality, Dialogue and Service Records – 62 items

Citywide Educational Coalition Records – 1582 items

Frank J. Miranda Papers – 58 items

Freedom House, Inc. Records – 83 items

Frieda Garcia Papers – 84 items

Holocaust Awareness Committee Records – 161 items

Inquilinos Boricuas en Acción Records – 5101 items

James W. Fraser (Collector) Photograph Collection – 5 items

La Alianza Hispana Records – 3332 items

Lower Roxbury Black History Project Records – 839 items

"School Committee Pickets," from James W. Frazer (Collector) Photograph Collection — “School Committee Pickets,” from James W. Frazer (Collector) Photograph Collection

Melnea A. Cass Papers – 1 item

Metropolitan Council for Educational Opportunity, Inc. Records – 943 items

Northeastern University Faculty Publications – 1 item

Northeastern University Photograph Collection – 7 items

Office of Community Affairs Records – 1 item

Phyllis M. Ryan Papers – 309 items

"Allen C. Hinckley. Hagen in Gotterdammerung," 1903. From Philip Hale Photograph Collection — “Allen C. Hinckley. Hagen in Gotterdammerung,” 1903. From Philip Hale Photograph Collection

Even though February is the shortest month of the year, we still managed to get a lot of new items into the Digital Commonwealth! Don’t miss any of the amazing new collections, including Judge Garrity’s chamber papers on the Boston Desegregation Case and historic photos of campus life at Mass Art in the 1800s.

Boston Public Library

Colonial and Revolutionary Boston – 2 items added to existing collection

Hugo Münsterberg Collection, 1890-1916 – 1772 items

Philip Hale Photograph Collection – 661 items

Duxbury Free Library

Letters and Miscellaneous Papers of the Winsor Family 1820-1915 – 226 items

Fitchburg Public Library

Books from Fitchburg Public Library – 1 item

Massachusetts College of Art and Design