Pella Community Memory Database

Pella Public Library is pleased to provide you with this free monthly newsletter keeping you informed on the progress being made on the Pella Community Memory Database (PCMD), a new grant-funded project sponsored by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). We hope you will find this newsletter informative!

All volunteers who initially registered with us have now been assigned teams and have a shared Google Drive folder which makes a collaborative space for the team. Teams were created and assigned based on the nine major tasks that have been identified for volunteer work:

1. Identifying photographs
   
2. Transcribing documents
   
3. Translating documents
   
4. Improving Metadata
   
5. Scanning Items
   
6. Providing Personal Documents to Scan
   
7. Publicity
   
8. Education and Lesson Plans
   
9. Interface Programming

If you would like to volunteer with the Pella Community Memory Database Project, we have a job for you! Please visit the Volunteer Registration page and we will be in touch!

Those of you familiar with managing organizations may have realized that the Pella Community Memory Database Project doesn't have a Mission Statement, or a Vision Statement, at least not formally. So why are we pursuing this project? Here are a few thoughts:

Preserve History - The Pella Community Memory Database serves as a place for the history of Pella, Iowa, to be preserved. It makes an important backup and safeguard in the event that the original materials are damaged or destroyed. It also minimizes handling of the original materials, as the documents can be viewed without touching the originals.

Present History - The Pella Community Memory Database serves to make history of Pella, Iowa more widely accessible to the local community, and to researchers on the state, national, and international level. It is a centralized location for this history to be accessed, and in addition the PCMD provides new and exciting ways to be able to electronically search this collection and make historical connections

Promote History - The Pella Community Memory Database serves as a tool to promote the history of Pella, Iowa to its citizens and to people all over the globe. Pursuing a forward-thinking project such as this one is a statement that Pella values its history and further ensures that a new generation of children, teens, and young adults have the resources to connect with this history in the most effective way possible.

Prompt History - The Pella Community Memory Database serves as a catalyst to encourage people to not only consider their own family history, but consider privately-owned documents and other materials that they may be able to contribute to the PCMD. The project will prompt citizens of Pella to come forward with previously unknown pieces of Pella history in order to share them with the larger community for the public good.

When the grant creating the Pella Community Memory Database was written, Pella Historical Society and Museums Director Val Van Kooten graciously agreed to partner with us on the project and provide with select historical photographs and documents to digitize and add to the database. We are pleased to report that we have received the first batch of photos, consisting of four boxes, from the PHSM! We will begin the testing phase soon, adding a few of these photos at first and making any changes that are necessary before proceeding further. The initial schedule had us beginning this portion of the project in earnest September of 2020. However, with the good progress currently being made on the Pella Public Library Family History Vertical Files, we may be able to begin the second phase sooner than expected! We are very exited and grateful to partner with the PHSM on digitizing these documents!

This is the original diploma for Cyrenus Cole, from Central University of Iowa (now called Central College), Pella, Iowa. It is dated June 14, 1881. This document is now a part of the Pella Community Memory Database. View it here.

This newsletter is published monthly with funding from an Institute of Museum and Library Services grant.

For more information, please contact:

Chris Brown
Project Director
641-628-4268
cbrown@cityofpella.com