Remember This

Have you meticulously recorded the history of several generations of your ancestors in a scrapbook? Do you remember everything you were ever taught about Ohio history? If you answered "yes" to both of these questions, you need read no further.

OK, now that we got rid of the snobs...here's a site for the rest of us! The Ohio Memory Project is taking a fascinating approach to cataloging our state history.

Where Do They GET This Stuff?
The Ohio Memory Project Staff reviewed collections submitted by a host of diverse entities, and late last year accepted historical materials from 80 institutions. Institutions whose collections will be represented include libraries and universities, zoos and museums, historical societies and other entities such as Sauder Village, the Zoar Village State Memorial, and the Youngstown Historical Center of Industry & Labor. It's not all dry stuff, either. I, for one, am interested in seeing what makes the scrapbook from the Ohio State University Cartoon Research Library!

An offshoot of the Ohio Memory Project (which, curiously, does NOT call itself "OMP") is the online scrapbook.

When it's done, the scrapbook will be the most comprehensive collection of primary source material about the state, effectively providing a single point of access to historical materials of multiple types from a broad range of institutions. In short, it's the kind of thing that makes history teachers go weak in the knees.

Here's how it will work: thanks to the magic of electronic imaging, the online scrapbook will include both print and three-dimensional memorabilia. The scrapbook--containing tools, plant, animal, and geological specimens, photographs, clothing, diaries and more--will "stitch" together the various collections, creating the most coherent and comprehensive coverage of the state's history, ever. Talk about a great spot to research a school report...

The project is expected to be complete in time to light the candles on Ohio's 200th birthday cake in 2003.

Find out more about this massive project at: http://www.ohiomemory.org/links.html

While you're there, explore some of the cool links to Ohio's past. My favorite (so far) is "Toledo's Attic." It's a virtual museum of Toledo, Ohio, and unlike my attic, it's clean and full of good stuff--no junk. You can tour the "attic" at http://www.attic.utoledo.edu/ While you're there, be sure to take the 1902 Walking Tour. The tour alone is worth a visit, and besides, it'll give you a chance to stretch your legs. Well, sort of.

The Ohio Memory Project's mission is "to provide access to historical treasures of Ohio, bringing together primary sources from all parts of the state in an online scrapbook that commemorates the Buckeye State's bicentennial, celebrates state and local history, encourages cooperation between archives, historical societies, libraries, museums, and other cultural organizations, and allows the global community to discover and explore Ohio's rich past."

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