Press Release
March 4, 2021
Contact: Nicole Harvey
Grants Administrator, Oklahoma Historical Society
Office: 405-522-5202
nharvey@okhistory.org
www.okhistory.org/grants
Lawton Public Library Awarded Oklahoma Heritage Preservation Grant
OKLAHOMA CITY — The Oklahoma Historical Society is proud to announce that the Lawton Public Library has been awarded a grant through the Oklahoma Heritage Preservation Grant Program.
The Lawton Public Library has been awarded $20,000 that will fund a digital conversion/memory lab that will allow individuals to create digital archives of important family history, documents, photos, sound recordings, videos and old files. This would transform and preserve mementos in digital formats that could be uploaded to personal storage devices or to cloud-based systems. Multiple copies could then be shared with others and passed down to future generations. Digitizing converts items to a stable, reproducible and sharable format. Library staff will work with users of the lab to identify items that are appropriate additions to their own collections.
"The Lawton Public Library is excited to launch a Digital Memory Center, where family historians can take cherished mementos and digitize these items to share and preserve," said Kristin Herr, library director. "This multimedia area will have equipment to digitize photos, family videos, important records, films, negatives and so much more!"
A total of just over $460,000 in grant funds will be distributed, with projects ranging from collections care and exhibit development to strategic planning and educational programming. "This is only the second year for this grant program. As organizations wrap up their grant projects from last year and as we see the quality of the applications that came in for this grant cycle, it is clear that there is a strong need for this type of grant program," said Nicole Harvey, OHS grants administrator.
The Oklahoma Heritage Preservation Grant Program is a grants-in-aid program offered by the Oklahoma Historical Society with a goal of encouraging the collection, preservation and sharing of Oklahoma history at the grassroots level in all parts of the state. Open to tribal and municipal governments and not-for-profit historical organizations located in Oklahoma and registered with the Oklahoma secretary of state, this grants program offers funding ranging from $1,000 to $20,000 for projects focused on collections, exhibits and programming. Applications for this annual program open in the fall and award announcements are made in January. For more information visit www.okhistory.org/grants.
The mission of the Oklahoma Historical Society is to collect, preserve and share the history and culture of the state of Oklahoma and its people. Founded in 1893 by members of the Territorial Press Association, the OHS maintains museums, historic sites and affiliates across the state. Through its research archives, exhibits, educational programs and publications the OHS chronicles the rich history of Oklahoma. For more information about the OHS, please visit www.okhistory.org.
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