Digital Library Project Records of the Library of Virginia,

Access and use

Location of collection:
Library of Virginia
The Library of Virginia
800 East Broad Street
Richmond, VA 23219
Contact for questions and access:
POC: Archives Reference Services
Phone: (804) 692-3888

Summary

Creator:
Library of Virginia.

Background

Scope and content:

The Records of the Digital Library Project are housed in nine archival boxes and are arranged in three series. Series have been designated for Administrative Files, General Project Files, and Project Files. These records document the work of the Library of Virginia's Digital Library Program from 1995 to 2002. These files contain correspondence, memorandums, reports, proposals, publications, and other sundry items. The most useful series is the Project Files series which includes information on the various digital projects accomplished by the Digital Library Program.

The Administrative Files series contains information regarding information technology, microfilm, and planning.

The General Projects series contains error reports, cataloging information, and project planning. Noteworthy in this series is the Interim Report to the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation regarding the Virginia Historical Inventory Project in 2000.

Lastly, the Project Files series contains a group of files arranged alphabetically by digital project. This series documents such digital projects as Bible Records, Board of Public Works, Confederate Rosters, Governor's Letters, Land Office Patents and Grants, Mutual Assurance Society, Revolutionary War Public Service Claims, and others.

Biographical / historical:

The Library of Virginia initiated the Digital Library Project in May 1995 to preserve, digitize, and provide access to significant archival and library collections. Between May 1995 and April 1998, the project digitized more than 2.2 million original documents, photographs, and maps, and implemented seventy electronic finding aids and fully-searchable databases and indexes, include Bible Records, the Virginia Colonial Records Project, Land Office Patents and Grants, the Virginia Historical Inventory, World War I History Questionnaires, and others. In 1998, the Library initiated the Virginia Digital Library Program to provide and disseminate local digitization projects. Twenty local digital library projects were developed from fourteen libraries and completed during Phase I. Sixteen libraries submitted projects for Phase II. Additional phases were planned for subsequent years. Local projects included the digitization of the Washington and Old Dominion Railroad Photographs from the Fairfax Public Library, the Doris S. Callahan Photograph Collection from the Eastern Shore Public Library, the Petersburg Newspaper Index from the Petersburg Public Library, and others. The Digital Library Program was eliminated in the state budget cuts on October 15, 2002.

Acquisition information:
Accession 43967 transferred by the Library of Virginia, Oct 15, 2002.
Physical description:
9 cubic feet (9 boxes).