DLG awards four Competitive Digitization service grants to Georgia cultural heritage institutions across the state

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Four institutions are recipients of the sixth set of service grants awarded in a program intended to broaden partner participation in the DLG. The DLG solicited proposals for historic digitization projects in a statewide call, and applicants submitted proposals for projects with a cost of up to $7,500.00 The projects will be administered by DLG staff who will perform digitization and descriptive services on textual (not including newspapers), graphic, and audio-visual materials. This subgranting program was presented the 2018 Award for Excellence in Archival Program Development by a State Institution by the Georgia Historical Records Advisory Council (GHRAC).

The recipients and their projects include:

Chipley Historical Center of Pine Mountain (Pine Mountain, Ga.)

  • Digitization of the record book of the Sardis Church of Christ, dated 1828-1915. The Sardis Church of Christ was associated with the Primitive Baptist Church in Harris County, Georgia.

Kennesaw State University Archives (Kennesaw, Ga.)

  • Digitization of drawings created and produced by the architectural firm Gregson and Ellis and its predecessor, Gregson and Associates. These materials include a selection of architectural drawings of facilities that provided public medical and mental health care in various counties in the State of Georgia, from the late 1940s to the early 1960s.

Peachtree City Library (Peachtree City, Ga.)

  • Digitization of materials documenting the conceptual beginnings and history of Peachtree City, Georgia, one of the country’s most successful post-World War II “new towns.”

Walter J. Brown Media Archives and Peabody Awards Collection (Athens, Ga.)

  • Description of 250 episodes of the Parade of Quartets, the longest continuous-running gospel program on television in the United States, which has aired on WJBF in Augusta, Georgia since 1953, and has featured African American gospel groups.

Preference in the selection process was given to proposals from institutions that had not yet collaborated with the DLG. Chipley Historical Center of Pine Mountain and the Peachtree City Library are both new partners for the DLG. Sheila McAlister, director of the Digital Library of Georgia notes: “This newest set of subgrant awards represents the rich cultural diversity of the state. The projects document early Primitive Baptist life; the interplay between architecture and public health; the development of planned communities; and religious musical heritage. We’re happy to add two new partners.”

About the Chipley Historical Center of Pine Mountain

The Chipley Historical Center is located in Pine Mountain, Georgia next to City Hall in the original city hall building, built just after the turn of the twentieth century, and still contains the original jail cells. Learn more at the Chipley Historical Center’s web site at chipleyhistoriccenter.org.

About the Kennesaw State University Archives

The Kennesaw State University Archives is a destination for university and community members to research the history of Kennesaw State University and people and organizations in north and northwest Georgia. Our professional archivists provide a range of services, including collection description and organization, reference consultations, reproduction requests, record transfers and donations, and training opportunities, as well as guidance on the preservation and maintenance of paper, audio-visual, and digital materials. Visit their web site at archives.kennesaw.edu.

About the Peachtree City Library

The Peachtree City Library serves the residents of Peachtree City, Georgia with adult programs, children’s programs, and is a proud member of the PINES Library Consortium. Learn more at their web site, peachtree-city.org/125/Library.

About the Walter J. Brown Media Archives and Peabody Awards Collection

The Walter J. Brown Media Archives & Peabody Awards Collection is home to more than 90,000 titles and 5,000,000 feet of newsfilm, making it the third-largest broadcasting archive in the country, behind only the Library of Congress and UCLA. The Archives comprise moving image and sound collections that focus on American television and radio broadcasting, and the music, folklore, and history of Georgia. There are more than 50,000 television programs and more than 39,500 radio programs in the Archives, in addition to audio folk music field tapes and home movies from rural Georgia. Their mission is to preserve, protect, and provide access to the moving image and sound materials that reflect the collective memory of broadcasting and the history of the state of Georgia and its people. Learn more at libs.uga.edu/media/index.html.

About the Digital Library of Georgia

Based at the University of Georgia Libraries, the Digital Library of Georgia is a GALILEO initiative that collaborates with Georgia’s libraries, archives, museums and other institutions of education and culture to provide access to key information resources on Georgia history, culture, and life. This primary mission is accomplished through the ongoing development, maintenance, and preservation of digital collections and online digital library resources. DLG also serves as Georgia’s service hub for the Digital Public Library of America and as the home of the Georgia Newspaper Project, the state’s historic newspaper microfilming project. Visit the DLG at dlg.usg.edu.

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Confederate naval ledger now freely available online

ATHENS, Ga. — A Civil War-era ledger belonging to James H. Warner, commander and superintendent of the Confederate States Naval Iron Works (sometimes referred to as the Columbus Iron Works) is now available through the Digital Library of Georgia at dlg.usg.edu/collection/ncwnm_jhwl

James H. Warner received a commission in the United States Navy in 1851 as a third assistant engineer. He became a chief engineer in 1856. Warner later served the Confederacy, where he received his assignment in Columbus, Georgia in 1862. As a naval engineer, he consulted for a number of projects throughout the South and was instrumental in the construction of the CSS Jackson, built in Columbus. 

The Confederate States Naval Iron Works operated from 1862-1865. The ledger also includes entries as late as 1866 as Warner worked with the United States Navy in turning over naval equipment to the United States government. Records surviving the Civil War that document the Confederate Navy is limited. This ledger provides information about Columbus, Georgia, ironclad construction, steam engines, and the daily operation and industrial reach of the Confederate States Naval Iron Works.

Robert Holcombe, former director and historian of the Confederate Naval Museum describes the significance of the ledger: 

“Not only has this ledger been a great resource for those studying steam engines, ship construction, etc. from the Civil War period, it is largely an untapped resource for those studying Columbus and the Chattahoochee River Valley. Making this ledger known and available for a wider audience will benefit Columbus, as well as making this important source more readily accessible for Civil War naval research.”

About the National Civil War Naval Museum 

The National Civil War Naval Museum houses the largest surviving Confederate warship, the CSS Jackson, as well as the wreckage of the CSS Chattahoochee, and the largest collection of Civil War Naval-related flags on display in the country. Their timeline exhibit shows naval events and features many of the museum’s most rare artifacts, such as the uniform coat of Captain Catesby Jones and Admiral Farragut’s two-star hat insignia. The museum hosts a range of events throughout the year with an emphasis on museum theatre and historic character interpretation. Additionally, there are living history events, tours, cannon firings, weapons demonstrations, local history projects and more. Visit portcolumbus.org/

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