Preservation assessment of local history collections for Erie County Public Library

FAIN: PG-271641-20

County of Erie (Erie, PA 16501-1011)
Anitra Gates (Project Director: January 2020 to January 2023)

A preservation assessment of the Erie County Library Public Library local history collections, which consist of 18,500 items, including a microfilm collection, art and other three-dimensional objects, maps, genealogical records, and monographs. Students, genealogists, regional historians, and community partners frequently use these collections. Among the highlights from the repository’s artifacts are Civil War battle flags from two regiments of Pennsylvania volunteers.

A professional preservation assessment of the Erie County Public Library’s local history collection. The local history collection contains about 20,000 monographs, about 2,000 of which are housed in a rare book vault. The collection also contains maps, artwork, Civil War artifacts and battle flags, and an extensive microfilm collection of newspapers with regional significance. This publicly accessible collection is extensively used by genealogists and local historians. To ensure the longevity and proper stewardship of this collection, the Library seeks funding to hire Dyani Feige from the Conservation Center for Art & Historic Artifacts to conduct a preservation assessment. The assessment will include evaluation of the building and environment, security and emergency preparedness, collection storage and treatment, and preservation planning. The resulting report will be used as a guide for creating meaningful, prioritized short-term and long-term preservation projects.