Crowdfunding for Preservation
We as a nation are defined by our cultural resources.
They are our history, our memory, our symbols, and our shared identity.
ARE YOU interested in history?
Would you like to play an important role in the preservation of America’s historical artifacts?
You can help by donating directly to a preservation, digitization, or conservation project.
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ARE YOU fundraising for a project to preserve collection materials?
NEDCC can help you spread the word by posting your project on our website and sharing on social media.
PRESERVING PAPER AND AUDIO COLLECTIONS
A Race Against Time
Many collections are in urgent need of conservation treatment and digitization, and America's cultural organizations still struggle to identify sources of funding to help preserve these collections.
Our nation’s collections at risk far outnumber funding opportunities currently available through federal, state, and foundation grants. Increasingly, the responsibility for preserving our history is in ALL our hands.
Collections at risk of deterioration include:
- Rare books
- Manuscripts
- Maps
- Parchment documents
- Historic town records
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- Photographs and negatives
- Scrapbooks
- Architectural plans
- Audio recordings
- Works of art on paper
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HOW CAN YOU HELP? WHY CROWDFUNDING ?
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1. Become a donor: Choose a project that interests you.
- NEDCC will maintain a list of a few of our clients' proposed conservation, digitization, and audio preservation projects that are in need of funding.
- We will describe the collection's / object’s significance and provide information about the organization responsible for the stewardship of the collection.
- NEDCC will help shine a spotlight on organizations' existing fundraising efforts through social media and E-News Announcements.
- This program is offered to help us fulfill NEDCC's mission.
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2. Make a donation directly to the organization that cares for the collection.
- Each organization listed has an easily accessible web payment portal on which to make your tax-deductible donation for the current project.
- Any amount will help and your participation will make YOU an important part of the preservation of our nation’s history.
- NEDCC does not receive any portion of the donations. Payments go directly to the organizations who care for the collection materials.
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INTERESTED IN WORKING WITH NEDCC ON A CROWDFUNDING PROJECT FOR YOUR ORGANIZATION?
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Who Is Eligible?
If NEDCC has developed a proposal and cost estimate for your object(s), or has developed a proposal for preservation services (e.g. assessment, workshop, etc.) within the last 12 months, you are eligible for the crowdfunding listing. (Priority will be given to objects that are at the Center waiting for approval.) If you are an individual who has signed a promise of gift to a cultural institution, you may also be eligible.
Here's how it works:
NEDCC's Role
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NEDCC has created a new page on its website, called Crowdfunding for Preservation.
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We will post a brief description of your conservation, digitization, audio preservation, or preservation activity project on NEDCC’s Crowdfunding for Preservation page.
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Next to each project, NEDCC will post a “Donate” button that links directly to a donation page on your website (or other payment portal such as Kickstarter, etc.)
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NEDCC will market the projects through our popular social media feeds, and by including a link to NEDCC’s Crowdfunding page on our E-News announcements.
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NEDCC does not receive any portion of the donations. We offer this program to help us fulfill our mission:
https://www.nedcc.org/about/mission
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Your Role
- Provide text for NEDCC’s Crowdfunding page describing the collection material or the preservation activity you are planning; why it is important to your organization and/or to the nation; the need for treatment or digitization; and a few sentences about your institution and its mission. (See pg. 2 for guidelines.)
- If you haven’t already, we strongly suggest that you create a credit card donation payment portal on your website. It works best if you create a page on which to post photographs and describe the treatment, digitization, or preservation activity proposed, since traffic will come directly to your donation page.
- You can also set up an account with a crowdfunding platform such as Kickstarter, Go-Fund-Me, or Razoo. You will be able to post images there and further describe the need. Your other marketing can send donors to this page.
- You undertake promotion of your fundraising initiative through your own social media feeds, newsletters, events, news outlets, or other communications.
- NEDCC will help raise awareness about your existing fundraising efforts, and get the word out to a wider audience in the cultural community and elsewhere.
- The rest is up to you! You are in the driver’s seat and we can help guide people to your efforts. The more you promote the Crowdfunding effort the better! (Note: NEDCC is not solely responsible for raising the funds.)
- Keep us posted about your fundraising success!
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QUESTIONS about the program? Interesting in working with NEDCC on a Crowdfunding for Preservation listing for your conservation, digitization, audio preservation, or preservation activity with NEDCC?
Contact: Julie Martin, NEDCC Marketing and Public Relations Manager
(We are also looking for examples of other creative fundraising initiatives for conservation, digitization, audio preservation, or other preservation activities, in order to inspire others to step up their fundraising efforts. Send us your link and we'll share on social media!)
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:
FREE Webinar Recording: Creative Fundraising for Preservation
Learn tips and tricks for successful fundraising in this 1 hour webinar.
Browse Current Crowdfunding Projects
UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA, FAIRBANKS, Elmer E. Rasmuson Library, Oral History Program
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CROWDFUNDING PROJECT:
Recovering the Damaged Recording of a Lost Native Alaskan Dialect Using the IRENE Technology
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The Alaska and Polar Regions Archives at the University of Alaska recently discovered four 78 RPM glass-based discs in the collection of Anthropologist Dorothy Jean Ray. Robyn Russell, Collections Manager of the Library’s Oral History Program says: “I opened the archival box, and inside there were four 78 rpm glass-base records in faded paper record jackets. The only information we had was the hand-written labels. For example, “Aleut (ATTU) #7 12/4/1945 ‘Song sung by father to child upon return after long absence.’”
Robyn explains, “With audio collections, you can’t look in the table of contents – you can’t thumb through them like a book to find out what it contains. You have to have playback. We knew that these recordings were unique and we could see that they were extremely fragile. We didn’t dare put a stylus to them. They were essentially hidden gems.”
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The discs were sent to NEDCC to be transferred using the IRENE system, a new ‘touchless’ technology developed by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratories and tested at the Library of Congress.
The discs were in relatively good condition and the Audio Preservation team was able to get sound from 7 of the 8 disc sides. The recordings were of a married couple from the island of Attu in the Aleutian Islands, speaking and singing. The recording was made on their return from a Japanese prisoner of war camp after WWII in 1945. These recordings are some of the only existing examples of the dialect unique to the Attu Island, and add to the little-known story of the fate of the Attu Islanders during WWII. The recordings can be now be fully transcribed and the music studied.
The Oral History Program is now in the process of fundraising to complete the complex manual tracking with IRENE of the final disc side, which is delaminating, a condition common to the glass-base discs of this time period. The label is marked “Conversation Concerning Basket-making.”
READ more in the NEDCC Story:
HIDDEN GEMS:
The IRENE Technology Helps Preserve a Lost Native Alaskan Dialect
Parascovia Lokanin and her daughter, Tatiana
on arrival at the WWII Japanese prison camp, 1942.
© Aleutian Pribilof Islands Association
DONATE to the University of Alaska Oral History Crowdfunding Project
NASHUA HISTORICAL SOCIETY, Nashua, New Hampshire
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CROWDFUNDING PROJECT:
Conservation Treatment of:
Two Insurance Map Books of Nashua, New Hampshire; Sanborn Map Company, 1912 (with corrections to 1930) and 1912 (with corrections to 1939).
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These oversized books of insurance maps are an invaluable resource for finding where a house or business used to be located, as well as the changes made to Nashua’s Streets and neighborhoods. Of interest to those studying maps, historic urban planning, and early 20th century New England cities. Interesting use of paper patches to keep the maps current!
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The Historical Society owns two similar copies of the Sanborn Insurance Company Map books of Nashua, New Hampshire. These map books show the center of the City of Nashua, its streets, buildings and residences along with the heights of structures, the building materials and exposures. The city departments used these Maps to locate areas of interest for the clerks, assessors, public works, fire service and for insurance purposes. These Map books were originally published in 1912 and have been updated by a “cut and paste” method up to 1941. Although essentially the same, each map book has its own its own set of unique preservation needs.
DONATE to the Nashua Historical Society Crowdfunding Project
View Successful Past Crowdfunding Projects
ASHBY HISTORICAL SOCIETY, Ashby, Massachusetts
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CROWDFUNDING PROJECT:
1775 Revolutionary War
Orderly Book
SUCCESS!!
FUNDS RAISED!!
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An Orderly Book for Capt. Abijah Wyman's Company for Col. William Prescott's Regiment, 5 of August 1775 to December ye 30th 1775
The Ashby Historical Society has recently received a late 1800’s copy of the 1775 Orderly Book of the Wyman Company an Ashby company during the siege of Boston in the Revolution.
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An Orderly Book is like a ship’s log recording the day to day events of the unit. In this case the Ashby men serving under Captain Wyman.
The book is the only surviving copy of this information and is in many ways priceless. It is handwritten on handmade paper, probably by a descendant of Captain Wyman and was found in the old Wyman Tavern. When copied it was nicely illustrated with both black and white and watercolor drawings.
The book is about 9X12 inches, the quality of the paper is such that it has survived well, however the binding is shot and the book cannot be viewed without causing further damage.
More information on the history of the Orderly Book.
Click on the images to zoom:
OLD BRIDGEWATER HISTORICAL SOCIETY, WEST BRIDGEWATER, MA
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CROWDFUNDING PROJECT:
Conservation Treatment of the 1652 'Hayward Letter'
SUCCESS! FUNDS RAISED!
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Last year, the Old Bridgewater Historical Society was able to successfully raise the funding necessary to preserve the original "Bridgewater Deed" signed by Myles Standish, Constant Southworth, Samuel Nash, and the Wampanoag Sachem Massasoit.
This year, the Old Bridgewater Historical Society wants to continue that success by crowdfunding to raise money for the "Hayward Letter," written in August 1652 by a concerned mother in England. The story gies that her son traveled to Bridgewater, MA, and she had not heard from him. Concerned and fearing the worst, she took her letter to the docks in England and begged a friend to try and find her son to deliver it. The letter did make it to her son, John Hayward, who was one of the earliest settlers of Bridgewater. Many thousands bearing the surnames Hayward, Haward, and Howard claim descendency from him today.
The 366-year-old letter has become extremely brittle and breaks at the smallest touch. the Society feels that it is imperative to save this timeless proof of a mother's love, before it is nothing more than dust.
See the transcribed text of the letter on the fundraising page below.
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WESTFORD MUSEUM AND HISTORICAL SOCIETY, Westford, MA
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CROWDFUNDING PROJECT:
Conservation Treatment of Pastel Portrait
of Governor John D. Long
SUCCESS! FUNDS RAISED!
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The Westford Museum and Historical Society owns a pastel portrait of Gov. Long, which has been damaged over the years.
In September of 1857, freshly graduated from Harvard University, John D. Long came to Westford to become preceptor at the highly acclaimed Westford Academy. His detailed dairies documented his day to day activities at the school. The Westford Museum is creating a new exhibit about Westford Academy and would like to repair this pastel portrait of John D. Long to include in the exhibit.
John Davis Long was the 32nd Governor of Massachusetts, serving from 1880 to 1883. He later served as the Secretary of the Navy from 1897 to 1902, a period that included the primarily naval Spanish–American War. Help us preserve an image of such an interesting and important figure in history.
OLD BRIDGEWATER HISTORICAL SOCIETY, Bridgewater, MA
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CROWDFUNDING PROJECT:
Conservation treatment, digitization, and rehousing of the Bridgewater Deed – 1649. Signed by Massasoit, Sachem of the Wampanoag Tribe, Myles Standish, Samuel Nash, and Constant Southworth
SUCCESS! FUNDS RAISED!
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In March of 1649, three colonists stood on Sachem's Rock in the historical town of Bridgewater, and purchased 196 square miles of land from the Wampanoag Native American Tribe. The land they purchased today consists of the towns of Bridgewater, West Bridgewater, East Bridgewater, Brockton (previously North Bridgewater), and parts of many more.
This is the original document signed on that historic day by Constant Southworth, Samuel Nash, Pilgrim Myles Standish, and Massasoit, Sachem of the Wampanoag Tribe.
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Today, the ink is badly fading on this document and it needs to have an archival-quality housing so that this 368-year-old document will remain for many generations to come. Conservation work will be done by NEDCC.
The Old Bridgewater Historical Society is the caretaker of two wonderful historical buildings. Both are open to the public.
The Museum Building was built in 1900 specifically for the OBHS, and is a beautiful example of turn-of-the-century Greek Revival architecture. It consists of a main floor with an attic and a basement. It houses many historical documents and artifacts, and has an area for meetings. It is located at: 162 Howard Street, West Bridgewater, MA www.oldbridgewater.org
UPDATE! November 2017
Tips on a successful Crowdfunding Initiative from the Old Bridgewater Historical Society
Shellie Karol-Chik, President of the Old Bridgewater Historical Society, shares her experience with their first Crowdfunding project:
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"When the Old Bridgewater Historical Society decided to use crowdfunding to meet our preservation project needs, we had no idea where to begin. When doing research, we were surprised at the number of platforms available for online fundraising. They varied widely in the fees charged and the timing of payouts. Some required that you notify them when you wanted a payout and then wait six weeks or more for a check to arrive, which was unfeasible for a small organization such as ours. We ultimately decided on using Razoo, which seemed the most friendly towards non-profits. We found the platform easy to use, and it even allowed us to list the names of donors that had donated outside of the website, and our donors also found it easy to use.
In addition to using an online platform for collecting the donations, we recommend contacting the local newspaper and having an article written with the organization’s needs. This was crucial, as at least 75% of our donors heard about our needs through our local newspaper and contacted us directly or through Razoo. We used Facebook, our website, and word of mouth to reach the other 25%.
Ultimately, we raised 30% more than we were asking for, and in under 30 days. We credit this with being clear as to the importance of our project, and detailed in our needs. We had intended to publish an article in our society’s newsletter asking for funding, but in the end, didn’t even get a chance to. It was easier than expected, and we can’t thank NEDCC enough for advertising for us on their site, giving us the estimate we needed to know our needs, and being patient while we raised the funds. We will definitely be working on another project in the future!"
VISIT the Old Bridgewater Historical Society Razoo Crowdfunding page HERE.
The fundraising succes is very impressive and we love reading all the comments. What a great result!
LEXINGTON HISTORICAL SOCIETY, Lexington, MA
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CROWDFUNDING PROJECT:
Conservation treatment, rehousing, and digitization of the 1776 Jonas Clarke Commemorative Sermon
SUCCESS! FUNDS RAISED!
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This thirty-four page booklet contains Reverend Jonas Clarke’s manuscript of the sermon he gave on April 19, 1776 “to commemorate the murder, blood-shed and Commencement of Hostilities, between Great-Britain and America” begun at the Battle of Lexington exactly one year before. Clarke (1730-1805) was the minister in Lexington from 1755 until his death, and he was present at the parsonage (the current Hancock-Clarke House) with visitors John Hancock and Samuel Adams during Paul Revere’s visit in April 1775. Clarke stood as a stronghold of Revolutionary ideals leading up to, and in the aftermath of, the Battle of Lexington. This document is an important part of the Jonas Clarke Family Collection of personal papers and sermons held by the Society.
Treatment needed: Cleaning, disbinding, mending and repair, deacidification, reassembling, creation of custom made housing, digitization.
SANDY ISLAND FAMILY CAMP ARCHIVES, Wolfeboro, NH
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CROWDFUNDING PROJECT:
Conservation and Digitization of Rare Landscape Plans Created by the Olmsted Brothers Landscape Architecture Firm
SUCCESS!!! Funds raised
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The Sandy Island Family Camp Archives is working to repair two historic landscape plans prepared for Sandy Island by the famous Olmsted Landscape Architects Firm and dated 1952 and 1938. "The plans are drawn on paper that is too old and brittle for us to handle safely, so we would like to have the plans repaired by paper conservation professionals," says Sara Clarkson of the Archives Committee. Once the plans are repaired, the plans will be digitized. Both the original plans and the digitized images will be available to interested Sandy Island viewers, to Sandy Island and YMCA historians, and to Olmsted historians.
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Sandy Island began in 1899 and was originally known as Camp Buena Vista, offering a vacation destination exclusively for men with simple tent camping. Owned by the Boston YMCA, the camp was renamed Sandy Island Men's Camp in 1920. By 1932, the camp, still exclusively for men, offered two dormitories with combined accommodations for fifty men.
With declining enrollment, Sandy Island offered an experiment in 'family camping' for one week in the mid-1930s. The idea proved a great success and throughout the 1940's an increasing amount of camper enrollments were offered to single women and to families. The camp gradually changed its focus from a men's camp, to a co-ed camp for adults, to its current status as a camp for families and single adults. It is now known as Sandy Island Family Camp.
Sandy Island Family Camp is now over 110 years old. The island comprises 66 wooded acres. 54 lakefront cabins line the north and south sides of the island. The Lodge, the center of the camp's social activities, reminds campers of its history, with its large stone hearths, exposed beams and wood floors.
LEARN MORE about Sandy Island Family Camp
(click to zoom and scroll images)
UPDATE - March 2017:
The Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site recently posted images on their Flickr collection that show on-site photographs of the Sandy Island "Mens" Camp in 1938 and after the hurricane in 1939. The first visit seems to correspond to one of the plans being conserved in this project. Amazing to see the photos snapped by the Olmsted team! View the Images Here - Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site.
SOUTH CAROLINA HISTORICAL SOCIETY, Charleston, SC
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CROWDFUNDING PROJECT:
Sandy Island Plantation Journals / Almanacs
1792–1798
SUCCESS! FUNDS RAISED!
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These three almanacs provide an in-depth look at life and labor on an 18th century plantation, but the books are worn, with faded ink and torn pages. Dating from 1792, 1797, and 1798, the handwritten plantation journal entries were kept by Allard Belin near Georgetown, South Carolina. Entries pertain to planting and harvesting, maintaining ditches and drains, problems with an overseer, as well as a list of the names of slaves and number of blankets they received.
These materials are frequently requested by researchers but their fragile condition prohibits access. After treatment, the text will be available through digitization and the items will be part of our physical exhibit.
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