National Archives Grants - November 2019
Archives Major Initiatives
For projects that will significantly improve public discovery and use of major historical records collections.
Unified Court Systems of New York State
Jamaica, NY $ 263,575
To support digitizing and making available freely online over 400,000 naturalization records from the boroughs of Queens and the Bronx. The Naturalization Records (1794-1952) include Declarations of Intent, Petitions for Naturalization, and other records useful for genealogical and historical research. The project will establish ties with the New York City Public Library’s Queens and Bronx branches and with history students recruited by St. John’s University to transcribe additional metadata. (RM102987-20)
Mississippi State University
Starkville, MS $340,424
To support the Lantern Project, a collaborative effort which focuses on the records that illuminate the experience of persons sold “down river” as part of the slave trade conducted on the Mississippi River. The project which will identify, digitize, transcribe and index legal records of enslaved persons held by Mississippi State University, University of Mississippi, Delta State University, Columbus-Lowndes Public Library, the Natchez Historical Foundation, and the Montgomery County (AL) Archives. The Lantern Project will coordinate the process of digitizing, transcribing and indexing these records in an online database that will be full-text searchable and provide digital images of the original records. (RM102988-20)
Library of Virginia
Richmond, VA $175,392
To support a project to enhance the website Virginia Untold: the African-American Narrative by adding digitized Registers of Free Blacks (1793-1865) from 19 localities in the Commonwealth, along with five additional Registers held by Arlington County. In addition, the project will arrange, describe, and digitize records relating to free blacks from the City of Richmond. The project will also work with county clerk’s offices that hold additional Registers to encourage digitization, and build on efforts to engage the public in transcribing the records. (RM102989-20)
University of South Florida
Tampa, FL $250,000
To support a project to translate and transcribe almost 8,000 pages from the Archives of the Diocese of St. Augustine of baptism, marriage, confirmation, and death notations, mostly written in Spanish, though interspersed with Latin and English, documenting the events from 1594-1821 for the Europeans, Indians, and Africans living there. The documents will be added to the website, La Florida, along with biographical portraits to deepen understanding of colonial Florida society. (RM102992-20)
Access to Historical Records: Archives Projects
For projects that ensure online public discovery and use of historical records collections.
Alaska Department of Education and Early Development
Juneau, AK $49,238
To support a project to select and digitize the 50 most significant civil and criminal case files from the territorial era, 1884-1959, plus surviving records of territorial police, U.S. Marshals, and Indian Police Force. (RH102747-20)
State Board Programming Grants
For projects that strengthen the nation's archival network through activities undertaken by state historical records advisory boards.
South Carolina Department of Archives and History
Columbia, SC $12,000
To support the work of the South Carolina Historical Records Advisory Board, including a survey and four focus groups to gather information that can be used to create a new strategic plan; a focus group to share information about the needs of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in the state; and the development of basic archival training for the archives of HBCUs and other primarily African American archives. (RC102958-20)
Tennessee State Library and Archives
Nashville, TN $38,500
To support the Tennessee Historical Records Advisory Board’s programming, including a regrant program to preserve and provide access to the state’s records, the Tennessee Archives Institute for training archivists; and access to online workshops that provide basic information about digitization. (RC102959-20)
Missouri Office of the Secretary of State
Jefferson City, MO $12,422
To support the Missouri Historical Records Advisory Board’s programming, including scholarships to a Family History Conference to 20 genealogical and historical societies and providing 2,000 additional copies of a six-generation genealogy chart for distribution at workshops, conferences, and other professional gatherings. (RC102960-20)
Montana Historical Society
Helena, MT $11,996
To support the Montana Historical Records Advisory Board’s programming, including scholarships for professional and amateur archivists to attend training, a one-day workshop to be held in conjunction with the Montana History Conference, distribution of two editions of the Montana Archivist newsletter and an Archives Month poster, a Traveling Student Archivist program that provides on-site assistance to an underserved archival repository, and an Archives Blitz to help process collections at a small, underserved archival repository. (RC102962-20)
Wyoming Department of State Parks and Cultural Resources
Cheyenne, WY $21,474
To support the Wyoming Historical Records Advisory Board’s programming, including offering at least two workshops; awarding up to five regrants of $2,500 each for projects to process, preserve, and provide increased access to records; and sponsoring the ARMA (formerly the Association of Records Managers and Administrators) spring seminar. (RC102963-20)
Colorado Department of Personnel and Administration
Denver, CO $40,000
To support the Colorado Historical Records Advisory Board’s programming, including up to six regrant projects that have a digital access component, site visits for all of the regrant projects, a two-day workshop focusing on preservation and access, and scholarships for attending professional workshops on archival practices. (RC102970-20)
Oklahoma Department of Libraries
Oklahoma City, OK $80,000
To support the Oklahoma Historical Records Advisory Board’s programming, including eight training opportunities in collaboration with key partners, at least 15 scholarships to support professional development, Archives Month posters, up to ten preservation assessments at smaller repositories, and at least 15 regrant projects to address collections care concerns or increase digital access. (RC102971-20)
Ohio Historical Society
Columbus, OH $30,720
To support the Ohio Historical Records Advisory Board, including awards for the best use of Ohio’s historical records in History Day projects; an award to recognize significant achievements in the management, preservation, access, advocacy and use of historical records in Ohio; the Ohio Citizen Archivist Award, fund regrants for policy development, collection assessment, preservation, and digitization projects; continue the Archives Fellowship Program to provide graduate students with archival training and practical experience; and award scholarships for professional development. (RC102974-20)
University of Georgia
Atlanta, GA $40,000
To support the work of the Georgia Historical Records Advisory Council’s programming, including two scholarships to cover the cost of attending the Georgia Archives Institute, present approximately 25-30 awards recognizing outstanding work in the preservation and use of archives, award eight regrants to local repositories, and co-sponsor the production and distribution of materials for Archives Month. (RC102976-20)
Texas State Library and Archives Commission
Austin, TX $23,802
To support the work of the Texas Historical Records Advisory Board’s programming, including registration for up to 30 people to participate in an online Basics of Archives course, conduct five 90-minute webinars on developing emergency preparedness and response plans, conduct three Texas Archival Resources Online training workshops in El Paso, Denton, and San Antonio, develop and distribute a digital Archives Month poster, sponsor and participate in the Austin and Houston Archives Bazaars, continue awards program activities for National History Day and Archival Excellence, and sponsor and participate in a session on archival records at the Texas State Historical Association meeting. (RC102977-20)
North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources
Raleigh, NC $25,364
To support the North Carolina Historical Records Advisory Board’s programming, including at least six online tutorials covering the basics of archival management, at least five site visits to provide assessments and two to three days of training, and prepare site visit reports with recommendations for increased access to and preservation of collections. (RC102979-20)
Commonwealth of Virginia
Richmond, VA $10,000
To support the Virginia Historical Records Advisory Board’s programming, including a survey of the needs of the state’s archival repositories and the development of a strategic plan with the assistance of a consultant. (RC102980-20)
Kansas Historical Foundation, Inc.
Topeka, KS $54,320
To support the Kansas Historical Records Advisory Board, including regrants to enhance online access to historical records, host vendor tables at professional and avocational meetings, and award scholarships for educational offerings. (RC102981-20)
Utah Division of Archives and Records Service
Salt Lake City, UT $40,000
To support the Utah Historical Records Advisory Board, including funding for at least six regrant projects that increase access to historical collections, conduct a Family History Workshop, hold two regional one-day workshops on grant writing and archives fundamentals, and sponsor at least one event during Archives Month. (RC102983-20)
State Historical Society of Wisconsin
Madison, WI $38,976
To support the Wisconsin Historical Records Advisory Board’s programming, including three workshops each year at the statewide Local History and Historic Preservation Conference, four workshops for municipal and county government record custodians, sponsorship of the Governor’s Archives Awards, and award 12 professional development scholarships. (RC102984-20)
Publishing Historical Records
For projects that document major historical figures, and important eras and social movements in the history of the nation.
American University
Washington, DC $36,117
To support a project to edit the Correspondence of Zachary Taylor and Millard Fillmore and produce digital and print editions of letters to and from the 12th and 13th U.S. presidents. The project expects to accession an estimated 14,000 letters, of which ~1,100 will be fully transcribed, annotated and published in three volumes, covering the years 1844-1853—a decade in which “the nation expanded its boundaries while advancing toward civil war.” During the proposed grant year, the project director will establish workflow systems and metadata standards, perform imaging, accessioning, and identification of new letters, as well as select, transcribe, and proofread an initial set of 20 letters, which will inform the project’s guide to editorial practice. A project website will also be launched. (PD102961-20)
University of Kentucky Research Foundation
Lexington, KY $75,000
To support the John Dickinson Writings Project, which is editing and publishing The Complete Writings and Selected Correspondence of John Dickinson. Known as the “Penman of the Revolution,” Dickinson wrote or collaborated on many of the key documents in the Continental Congress and served as a delegate to the Constitutional Convention. The edition is currently estimated at nine volumes, and will be published in both print and digital forms. During the proposed grant year, staff members will bring to near completion Volume 4 (1770–1775), the first of two volumes documenting the years of the American Revolution, and develop the project’s digital edition website with 20 sample documents. (PD102964-20)
Massachusetts Historical Society
Boston, MA $160,000
To support a project to edit The Adams Papers—a selective edition of the papers of John Adams and the Adams Family. During the proposed grant period, editorial staff will publish volume 15 and commence editorial work on volume 16 of the Adams Family Correspondence (AFC), advance work on volume 21 of the Papers of John Adams to near completion, and prepare XML files for and publish 288 documents from AFC volume 13 to the Adams Papers Digital Edition. (PD102965-20)
Research Foundation for SUNY Old Westbury
Albany, NY $127,729
To support a project to edit the Papers of Clarence Mitchell, Jr. An American labor and civil rights activist and Director of the NAACP’s Washington Bureau, Mitchell served as the NAACP’s chief lobbyist for nearly 30 years. During the proposed grant period, project staff will complete final review and correction of page proofs for print edition Volume 5 (1955-1957) and Volume 6 (1958-1960); complete final revision of the Volume 7 (1961-1964) manuscript, and resume editorial work for Volume 8 (1965-1968). For the digital edition, staff at the University of Virginia’s Center for Digital Editing will complete the digital conversion of previously published print volumes 1-3 (documenting the years 1942-1950). (PD102966-20)
George Washington University
Washington, DC $160,000
To support a one-year grant to the Eleanor Roosevelt Papers Project. During the proposed grant period, editorial staff will add an electronic edition of Volume 2 (1949-1952) of the Papers of Eleanor Roosevelt: The Human Rights Years to the Eleanor Roosevelt Papers website; publish print Volume 3 (1953-1955); advance editorial work on Volume 4 (1956-1959); perform document search and accessioning for Volume 5 (1960-1962); and publish at least 30 additional sound-recording transcripts to the Eleanor Roosevelt Papers Audio Archive. (PD102968-20)
The Rector and Visitors of the University of Virginia
Charlottesville, VA $130,000
To support a project to edit and publish a comprehensive edition of The Papers of James Madison. During the proposed grant period, the project will publish Presidential Series Volume 11 (thus completing that series altogether), and advance work on Volumes 12 and 13 of the Secretary of State Series, as well as Volumes 4 and 5 of the Retirement Series. (PD102973-20)
The Rector and Visitors of the University of Virginia
Charlottesville, VA $85,000
To support the Presidential Recordings project at the Miller Center of Public Affairs. For the proposed grant period, project staff will transcribe, annotate, and prepare publication-ready files for 467 conversations related to the Election of 1964, drawn from the secret recordings of President Lyndon B. Johnson. These conversations comprise 51 hours of recorded material and cover President Johnson’s tactics and strategy for winning both the presidential election and expansive majorities in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate in November 1964; the respective trajectories of the Democratic and Republican parties; Johnson’s evolving thoughts about White House, Cabinet, and Executive Branch personnel; and a legislative agenda for Johnson’s first full term as president. (PD102975-20)
Kentucky Historical Society
Frankfort, KY $98,800
To support a project to edit and publish the Civil War Governors of Kentucky Digital Documentary Edition. During the proposed grant period, project staff will continue development of its annotation tool, and perform all editorial work on and publish an additional 400 documents on the project’s digital edition website. (PD102978-20)
University of Wisconsin
Madison, WI $160,000
To support a project to edit and publish The Documentary History of the Ratification of the Constitution and the Adoption of the Bill of Rights. During the grant year, the project will published volume 1 and complete all editorial work for volumes 2 and 3 of the Bill of Rights Series; add supplementary documents to the UW-Madison Libraries Digital Collections; and commence work on the cumulative index for DHRC project volumes 1-34. (PD102993-20)