Ever wish you could travel back in time, or wonder what life was like centuries ago? Who were the people who lived then? What were their interests, what did they read, what made the news? At some point, everyone has asked themselves compelling questions about the past, but they often remain largely unanswered, as so many historical truths are buried deep in vast, inaccessible archives.

History, Version 2.0

Everyone has asked themselves compelling questions about the past, but they often remain largely unanswered, as so many historical truths are buried deep in vast, inaccessible archives.

However, new technology may change all this. DCL customer Accessible Archives, Inc., is part of this exciting revolution in the way people interact with history.

The utility of history extends well beyond the satisfaction of playful curiosity. The mantra of a million history teachers rings true: history is incredibly useful. It follows, then, that access to history is extremely valuable. Historians rely heavily on primary materials: texts like old newspapers play a crucial role in their research, whether they're examining the political situation, looking for clues about social interactions, writing a biography, or investigating a particular incident from the era. Historians, economists, and social scientists all have an interest in the past, as does the author writing historical fiction or the filmmaker whose movie is set centuries ago. All require access to an authoritative historical record.

Long Lost No Longer

The mantra of a million history teachers rings true: history is incredibly useful. It follows, then, that access to history is extremely valuable.

Accessible Archives, Inc., does exactly what its company name suggests-it makes archives accessible by publishing electronic full-text searchable historical databases of 18th and 19th century American newspapers, periodicals, and county histories. When it came to publishing the South Carolina Gazette, DCL was there to lend a hand.

The South Carolina Gazette was published in Charlestown from 1732 to 1775, and was the state's first successful newspaper. Its articles give contemporary readers a sense of what life was like during Colonial times. With DCL's help, the Gazette was transformed into a database from microfilm, which had only fair images, presenting a challenge for the conversion project. To create a full XML-tagged file that was searchable required keying in the text from a file digitized from the microfilm.

Time Travel-Coming Soon to a Library Near You

Following the successful South Carolina project, DCL worked with Accessible Archives on a similar XML-tagged, fully-searchable database for The Virginia Gazette-only this time the original was hard copy, rather than microfilm. Tagging these publications enables very precise, targeted searching of their text. You can search for specific phrases within a field, distinguish between a person's name as author or as mentioned in an article, limit your search to article titles only, and choose an exact publication date.

Tagging enables targeted searching of text. You can search for specific phrases within a field, distinguish between a person's name as author or as mentioned in an article, or choose an exact publication date.

DCL also created MARC records for the various Accessible Archives databases, including several African American newspapers, the Liberator, Godey's Lady's Book, and the Pennsylvania Gazette. MARC records make these documents easier to find, and facilitate the inclusion of these historical newspapers, periodicals, and books in library federated search systems. Federated search is fast becoming a standard feature for accessing materials in library collections, whether they are held in physical format or as electronic resources. Students searching the library catalog are led to all types of available information to them at their library. Thus, the addition of MARC records to Accessible Archives' historical materials causes the historical record to join library search results, making them even more, well, Accessible.

DCLnews Editorial
September 2009