South Hadley MA « News & Announcements

Bradford street — Bradford St. from
Lawrence, Mass. Before Urban Renewal Photograph Collection

One of our favorite contributors, Lawrence Public Library, added to several existing collections as well as added new collections in July. One of which is the Lawrence, Mass. Before Urban Renewal Photograph Collection. Lawrence hired a photography studio to document the first area targeted for urban renewal, so we have photos like the one of Bradford Street (Right) showing what was slated for demolition.

On a happier note, the Cambridge Historical Commission added 278 items to their Cambridge Photo Morgue Collection. Sometimes the captions only add to the mystery of the photos. One of my favorites is Cambridge “Sparks” and his radio scooter. (Below left)

Cambridge Sparks and his radio scooter — Cambridge “Sparks” and his radio scooter from Cambridge Photo Morgue Collection

July also saw contributions to existing collections at the Boston Public Library, Harvard Law School Library, a major re-harvesting from Amherst College and a new collection from the South Hadley Public Library. (Below listings.) We hope all Massachusetts cultural institutions will continue to contribute new and to existing collections. It makes for a better Digital Commonwealth, which, as you can see, is already pretty amazing.

Amherst College
23 new collections re-harvested; 3,290 new items added to existing collections

Boston Public Library
The Liberator (Boston, Mass. : 1831-1865) – 261 items added to existing collection

Cambridge Historical Commission
Cambridge Photo Morgue Collection – 278 items added to existing collection

Harvard Law School Library
Sacco-Vanzetti Collections – 133 items many to existing collection

Lawrence Public Library
Ayer Mill Spinning Department – 1 item added to existing collection
Franklin Associates – 1 item added to existing collection
George P. Farrell – 1 item
Lawrence British Club, Lawrence, Mass. – 1 item
Lawrence, Mass. Before Urban Renewal Photograph Collection – 132 items
Lawrence, Mass. Engineering Department. Plans and associated papers – 39 items added to existing collection
Lawrence, Mass. Flood of 1936 – 2 items added to existing collection
Lawrence, Mass. Panorama Photographs – 4 items added to existing collection
Lawrence, Mass., Water Department – 4 items
Lawrence School Photographs – 1 item
St. Mary’s High School, Lawrence, Mass. – 1 item

South Hadley Public Library
South Hadley Postcard Collection – 101 items

Mount Holyoke, Summit House — Mt. Holyoke, Summit House from South Hadley Postcard Collection

Broadway in Lawrence sewer map — Broadway, from Lawrence, Mass. Engineering Dept. City Sewers

It’s the quirky collections that will delight you if you give them a chance. Not that there isn’t incredible value in six collections added by the New England Historic Genealogical Society, Canton Public Library’s Canton Historical Commission Photos or the Boston Public Library’s Thaxter/Fields correspondence. Some people will be so pleased yet more nautical charts have been added by the Atwood House Museum of the Chatham Historical Society or yet more Sacco-Vanzetti materials – this time from the Harvard Law School Library.

For my money, though, there’s a certain fascination with the Lawrence Public Library’s 724 items from that city’s Engineering Department on city sewers. It sounds ridiculous and then you look at them. They’re maps of the sewer system. (See left.) You get to see the city’s streets at a micro level. They even show where the manholes [sic] are! They’re hand drawn with lovely, legible script. There are notes on why the sewer was laid on this street, at this elevation. What a wealth of detail. File it under things you never knew you wanted to know.

Now, I don’t want to leave you down in the dumps, so let’s welcome the South Hadley Public Library to the Digital Commonwealth by highlighting their two new collections: Canal Park Committee Collection and Scott Family Photographs. While the latter is a pretty traditional, but still wonderful collection of 19^th century photos, the former is a collection of slides the Canal Park Committee used for talks on the history of the Canal and related sites and institutions. The images cover a range of historical eras and subjects. In addition to locks and gates, power plants and buildings, there are some lovely landscapes. Let us leave the industrial behind and spend a few moments with nature. Ah, the flowering crab – much more attractive than its name suggests. (See below.)

Atwood House Museum of the Chatham Historical Society
Nautical Chart Collection of the Chatham Historical Society – 39 items added to existing collection

Boston Public Library
Celia Thaxter correspondence with Annie Fields, 1869-1893 – 289 items

Canton Public Library
Canton Historical Commission Photos of Canton – 170 items

Harvard Law School Library
Sacco-Vanzetti Collections – Harvard Law School Library – 80 items added to existing collection

Flowering crab along canal — Flowering crab, from Canal Park Committee Records

Lawrence Public Library
Engineering Department. City Sewers – 724 items

Malden Public Library
Local History Digital Collection – 2 items

New England Historic Genealogical Society
6 collections – 469 items harvested

South Hadley Public Library
Canal Park Committee Collection – 295 items
Scott Family Photographs – 86 items

News & Announcements – Digital Commonwealth

Tag Archives: South Hadley MA

New Collections added to Digital Commonwealth in July

New Collections Added to Digital Commonwealth in August