Access to Historical Records

The National Historical Publications and Records Commission proposes a revised grant program to promote the preservation and use of the nation’s most valuable archival resources. This grant program is designed to support repositories in preserving and processing primary source materials of national significance. The program emphasizes the creation of online tools that facilitate the public discovery of historical records. We invite your comments and suggestions for this program.

The Commission looks to fund projects that undertake the following activities:

  • Preservation, arrangement, and online description of historical records in all formats
  • Digital preservation of electronic records and unstable audio and visual formats

After completing one or both of those activities, applicants may also propose to digitize materials to provide online access to collections.

To increase the online availability of the nation’s most valuable archival materials, the Access to Historical Records grant program encourages applicants to submit work plans to both process and digitize entire series or collections. Applicants that intend solely to digitize materials will be asked to submit proposals to the Online Publishing of Historical Records grant program.

A grant normally is for one to two years and for up to $200,000. The Commission expects to make up to 14 grants in this category for a total of up to $1,000,000. Grants begin no earlier than TO BE DETERMINED (TBD).

Application deadlines: DRAFT TBD; FINAL TBD.

Please read the attached Access to Historical Records  draft grant announcement. We welcome your comments here on the NHPRC blog – please supply any comments by March 31, 2014.

 

9 thoughts on “Access to Historical Records

  1. How do you differentiate between digitization and digital preservation of unstable a/v formats? Do you not consider digitization a pre-requisite step for digital preservation of unstable analog materials? Or are you using “digitize” to mean only “make available online”?

  2. I cannot log into this webinar. I am asked for a security code and when I enter 6503625 I am told it’s incorrect. Have tried multiple browsers. In future, can you please provide a telephone number for someone to contact for technical difficulties?

  3. Hi-

    Will the webinar be posted somewhere once it is completed. I wasn’t able to join the room and the event code kept being rejected. Thanks.

    1. We had some technical problems with AT&T and will have to reschedule the webinar. Please stay tuned for a new date/time.

  4. At the webinar, you mentioned that you would fund conversion of legacy finding aids to EAD format. In your revisions, have you maintained that you would fund this?

  5. I’m looking for grants to assist in the recording of primary oral histories of UDT divers and original Navy Seals. The transcripts and video footage would be donated to the National Archives, the Navy SEAL museum, as well as nonprofit organizations creating a strong historical database for the SEAL community. The collection would be digital! Is this a grant our project should apply for?

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