Preserving the Pictorial History of Private Education in Kentucky (1860s-1960s)

FAIN: PG-51259-11

Centre College of Kentucky (Danville, KY 40422-1309)
Robert Glass (Project Director: May 2010 to May 2012)

Hiring a consultant to assess the preservation needs of 3,000 photographic prints, negatives, and slides in a variety of fragile formats created from 1867 to the 1960s that document the history of four educational institutions in Kentucky, including the Kentucky School for the Deaf and the Kentucky College for Women. The images document collegiate life and athletics, social events, graduating classes, and campus buildings.

Centre College (founded 1819) maintains a small photography collection documenting the history of four educational institutions in Kentucky (1860s-1960s), including Centre, a school formed by a pro-slavery faction, a school for the deaf, and a women's college. Centre hosts the only known archives of these schools, two of which are defunct. The images exist on nitrate-based negatives, or are rolled or mounted on highly acidic paper; it is doubtful that this unique collection will last another century in its current state. Centre aims to hire a photography preservation specialist to evaluate the collection's content, condition, and environment, and to train library staff in preservation methods. Centre wants to provide an appropriate environment for this collection and gain the knowledge needed to repair, preserve, digitize, and display these fragile and important images. The eventual goal is to digitize the collection and make it available through a searchable online database.