LIU unveils digital collection of historical documents

Long Island University's Palmer School of Library and Information Science announced the publication of “Digitizing Local History Sources,” a groundbreaking five-year project and website that offers public access to more than 65,000 pages of historical materials from 45 participating historical societies throughout Long Island. Island. The venture was funded by a $1.5 million grant from the Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation.

One of the highlights of the project is the Bert Morgan Collection, which contains over 600 images digitized from negatives held by the Southampton History Museum. Morgan, a prominent high society photographer, captured the “social scene” and happenings in Southampton from the mid-1950s to the mid-1960s. Locations include Shinnecock Hills Golf Course, Southampton Bathing Corporation (“Beach Club”) and the Meadow Club of Southampton. You can see the Bert Morgan collection here: [https://liu.access.preservica.com/uncategorized/SO_3ad937de-be29-4001-9633-11a91e29a789/]

Ranked among the “Best Scholarly Archiving Programs” in the nation by US News & World Report, the Palmer School has offered 105 graduate and doctoral students the ability to digitize documents since the project began in 2017.

“Palmer School students have become world-renowned archivists, historians and librarians,” said Long Island University President Kimberly R. Klein. “I am proud that LIU can provide them with a unique experiential learning opportunity that will forever preserve the history of Long Island.”

The collection documents the range of life on Long Island: from the diary of a schoolgirl in the 1920s to the day-to-day diary of a World War II school principal. From an 18th-century blacksmith's daily account book to promotional scrapbooks from Long Island's quintessential department store. from 17th century deeds to 20th century real estate records. from photographs of auto races in the early 1900s to scrapbooks documenting the devastation caused by the hurricane of 1938. and from the daily lives of wealthy Gold Coast residents to the treasured photo albums of Fire Island community members.

According to Kathryn M. Curran, Executive Director of the Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation, “the archival collections of Long Island historical societies are among their most valuable assets. The RDLGF's partnership with the LIU Palmer School of Library and Information Science provides students with hands-on archival education while introducing our historic curators to best practices for handling and accessing their incredible resources. The availability of these collections online will now easily expand research possibilities into Long Island's rich heritage.”

You can access the Digitization of Local History Resources project by visiting this link. Current Palmer School students continue to digitize historical documents and update the collection on an ongoing basis. For additional information, contact the Project Director Dr. Gregory S. Hunter at Long Island University Palmer School of Library and Information Science: greg.hunter@liu.edu.