#pacscl

Opera, including Lucidarium artis transmutationis metallorum; extracts from the Sommeta and Violetta; and Epistola,  Donald F. and Mildred Topp Othmer Library of Chemical History, 1557 (Othmer MS 8)

BiblioPhilly is LIVE!

During the Civil War, the Government tried a new approach to filling its personnel shortage: It opened its payrolls to women for the first time. Check out this article in the National Archives News here: https://www.archives.gov/…/women-pave-way-to-federal-employ…

This turning point in women’s history is thoroughly documented in a series of records, Recommendations for Employment at the Schuylkill Arsenal, 1861-1867 (https://catalog.archives.gov/id/854656), held at the National Archives at Philadelphia. Most of the applications were women who had relatives in the Union Army, and the records primarily consist of letters of recommendation by various politicians and other notable citizens for individuals seeking jobs at the Arsenal, primarily during the Civil War.

These records will be digitized in their entirety because the PACSCL: The Philadelphia Area Consortium of Special Collections Libraries​, of which the National Archives at Philadelphia is a part, has been awarded a $496,000 grant from the Digitizing Hidden Special Collections and Archives initiative of the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR)​, generously supported by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation​, for its project “In Her Own Right: The Many Faces of Women’s Activism, 1820-1920.”

Led by PACSCL members Special Collections Research Center, Temple University Libraries​, Drexel University College of Medicine Legacy Center Archives, and the Friends Historical Library​ at Swarthmore College​ and involving a total of 11 partner institutions, including the National Archives at Philadelphia, the project will complete the digitization and online presentation of a significant body of letters, diaries, photographs, organization records and other documents, totaling 117,000 pages. These documents illuminate women’s efforts to assert their rights and work for the rights of others in a variety of spheres in the century leading up to the ratification of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, granting women the right to vote, in 1920. The images and associated metadata will be released into the public domain for use by researchers and the general public. The project will commence in February 2018 and is anticipated to be completed in autumn 2019 and available to researchers in advance of the 19th Amendment centennial.

The project builds on earlier work conducted with the assistance of a Foundations grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities​. The newly digitized materials will be available through the website developed as part of that project, as well as in the National Archives Catalog (www.catalog.archives.gov). Project participants also intend to expose the materials via their own websites as well as such sites as the Digital Public Library of America and the Internet Archive.

To safeguard the digital data for the long term, PACSCL member Lehigh University​ is making space available in its state-of-the-art data storage repository in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. (Having no female students in the 1820-1920 time frame, Lehigh is not contributing collections.) Bruce M. Taggart, Vice Provost of Library and Technology Services, noted that Lehigh is contributing this service to the project as part of its commitment to the PACSCL consortial process and the University's interest in furthering PACSCL's ongoing program of cooperative digitization.

The Library Company is pleased to announce the pilot website for "In Her Own Right: Women Asserting Their Civil Rights, 1820-1920", including the Library Company’s Cassey and Dickerson albums, is now live. A pilot project executed by members of the Philadelphia Area Consortium of Special Collections Libraries (PACSCL), with funding from the National Endowment of the Humanities, the site showcases Philadelphia-area collections highlighting women’s struggle leading to the passage of the 19th Amendment.

http://inherownright.org/

 View the digitized Cassey album here: https://goo.gl/oLPZjf

De consolatione philosophiae; De mirabilis mundi; Grammatical treatise ?; Unidentified theological treatise; Miscellany, Free Library of Philadelphia, 15th century (Lewis E 2)

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Psalter, The Rosenbach, 14th century (MS 232/15)

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Book of Hours, Use of Rome, Free Library of Philadelphia, 15th century (Lewis E 115)

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Armorial, Free Library of Philadelphia, 16th century (Lewis E 17)

BiblioPhilly is LIVE!