The LDL is growing quickly. As of this month, we have 25 members, including public libraries, academic libraries, museums, and archives, and we’re thrilled to welcome our newest members: Ouachita Parish Public Library, Calcasieu Parish Public Library, and the Louisiana State Archives. However, limited technology and staffing at many of the state’s cultural heritage institutions presents a barrier to participation in the LDL.
In response to this, LSU Libraries has launched the Mobile Digitization Lab. This new initiative focuses on small, community-oriented libraries, archives, and museums across Louisiana that otherwise wouldn’t be able to participate in the LDL. For the pilot project, completed this month, Sophia Ziegler, Gabe Harrell, Leah Powell, and Amanda Davis brought scanners and cameras to the Jeanerette Museum and spent one week digitizing the museum’s unique historical material. The Mobile Digitization Lab allows LSU Libraries to share resources and expertise, thereby increasing the number of institutions that can contribute to the LDL. With the success of the pilot project in Jeanerette, LSU Libraries plans to continue the Mobile Digitization Lab initiative, visiting more museums and libraries in the coming years and furthering participation in the LDL.
The Jeanerette Bicentennial Park and Museum is a community-oriented museum dedicated to collecting the history of Jeanerette, Louisiana. Active in both local and national exhibitions -- including multiple Smithsonian travelling exhibitions -- the museum collects the historical materials of the City of Jeanerette and surrounding areas, notably exhibiting artifacts related to the history of Louisiana’s sugarcane and cypress industries. Museum volunteers used their familiarity with the collection and the community to prioritize items for digitization. During the one-week stay, the Mobile Digitization Lab crew was able to digitize nine journals detailing the history of Jeanerette, as well as records from historic local business and local publications. All content will be added to the LDL, and copies of the digital files will be left at the museum for the benefit of local researchers.
Funds for the Mobile Digitization Lab were generously supplied by the Center for Computational Technology and the Office of Research and Economic Development.
