UPDATE:
Project Illuminate will be filming each Saturday in August, 2021 from 10am to 12pm. Sign up for a half-hour slot by calling (508) 693-9433 or emailing amalik@clamsnet.org
Project Illuminate is a resource center at the Oak Bluffs Public Library that collects and preserves the untold stories of the people in Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts.
The resource center is comprised of our Oral History Recording Studio and our Digital Memory Lab.
Both resources are made possible by an IMLS grant administered by the MBLC. Learn more about the Go Local grant.
Oral History Recording Studio
Stories matter.
Your story matters.
We’ll make sure that others can hear it.
The Oral History Recording Studio is a place where Oak Bluffs Library staff or trained volunteers film those with an Oak Bluffs story to tell. We are looking for people to tell us their story for preservation in the historic record. We are particularly interested in making sure we preserve stories that have never been told before.
If you’ve lived or visited Oak Bluffs for an important part of your life but don’t know how to talk about it, don’t worry! Our staff will provide you some ideas about how to tell your story.
The recording studio is open to people of all ages with an Oak Bluffs story.
Ready to tell your story? Let us know!
Digital Memory Lab – Coming Soon!
COMING IN SUMMER 2021!
The Digital Memory Lab is a free, do-it-yourself space for digitizing personal archive collections. Using professional-grade equipment, you can digitize multiple formats, including: audio cassettes, VHS cassettes, slides and photographic prints.
The Lab also will offer a wide selection of digital preservation classes.
Why Archive?
Daily organization
Personal collections are larger than ever, spanning physical things like keepsakes and journals, to digital things like Word documents, photographs, email, and social media accounts. Taking steps to care for your stuff will help you locate, reference, and re-use what you create.
Security
Losing track of your assets and online accounts is a threat to your online identity and personal security. This means that sometimes even deleting is a valuable personal archiving strategy.
Legacy
What you produce purposefully (like a home movie or photograph) and what you produce in daily life (like a calendar appointment or email) could be important for your loved ones and for the cultural record.
Lab Equipment
COMING IN SUMMER 2021!
The Memory Lab will have equipment that you can use to digitize your personal archival collections. Transfer multiple formats of material, including:
- Videocassette tapes: VHS, VHS-C, S-VHS
- Slides (35mm)
- Negatives and film
- Photographs
- Documents and papers
- CDs and DVDs (optical disks)
- 3.5 inch floppy disks
- Memory Cards: SD/MMC, MS/PRO, CF I/II, xD/SM
The professional-grade equipment and software chosen for the Lab allows you to easily make archival, high-quality digital copies of your memories. You will work on your project independently, with instructions.
You must attend an orientation class prior to using the Lab.
Go Local Grant
The Project Illuminate resources were purchased with grant funding from the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners and the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
In 2020, the Oak Bluffs Public Library was awarded the Go Local : Building Communities and Collections grant. In this 2-year, $15,000 grant, “[p]rojects might draw on and enrich local genealogical knowledge, help to identify and document knowledge of local landmarks, capture memories of a regional event, involve veterans and students, mark a town anniversary or significant event, and develop the library’s collection through the addition of traditional or digital content.” Source : MBLC
