Maine Historical Society Awarded Two $5,000 Grants From Maine Community Foundation
November 3, 2006
Portland, ME – Maine Historical Society (MHS) is pleased to announce it is the recipient of two $5,000 grants from the Maine Community Foundation (MCF).
In August, Maine Historical Society received $5,000 from the Kay E. Dopp Fund, a component fund of MCF's Community Building Grant Program. This grant will help MHS sustain its Community History Outreach Program in communities throughout Maine. The program is designed to build public access to historical collections held by organizations throughout Maine.
"The Community History Outreach Program grows out of a pilot project created to recruit organizations to participate in the Maine Memory Network (MMN), a nationally recognized digital museum," notes MHS Executive Director, Richard D'Abate. "Our coordinators will provide extensive support to local historical organizations by helping them improve their overall organizational capacity and by expanding public access to their collections."
In September, MHS received $5,000 from the PF Fund of the Maine Community Foundation to review, pre–catalog, scan, photograph, edit and transcribe important historical documents from the Pierce family into digitized information appearing on MHS's online historical resource, the Maine Memory Network (MMN).
"The Pierce Family Collection offers a unique view into a Western Maine family from the late eighteenth to the early twentieth centuries," says MHS Historian Candace Kanes. "The majority of the collection is nineteenth century letters, diaries, and documents that deal with everything from Maine politics, including statehood issues, to education. The family believed in education for daughters as well as sons. Because it covers everyday life to notable public events, the collection is especially useful in helping to understand Maine life, economics, social issues, and governmental concerns."
The Maine Historical Society preserves the heritage and history of Maine: the stories of Maine people, the traditions of Maine communities, and the record of Maine's place in a changing world. Maine Memory Network, created and managed by MHS, houses more than 11,000 historic items contributed by 160 organizations across the state.
A statewide organization with offices in Ellsworth and Portland, the Maine Community Foundation works in partnership with donors and community groups to strengthen Maine. For more information, visit MCF's website at www.mainecf.org, or call 1–877–700–6800.
For more information:
Maine Historical Society489 Congress Street, Portland, ME 04101
207–774–1822
www.mainehistory.org
www.mainememory.net
Maine Historical Society preserves and shares Maine's story to enrich life in contemporary Maine.
