6
MARCH 30�APRIL 6, 2022
FROM THE SHELF
CHECKING OUT THE
WORLD OF BOOKS
Weston library has historical photo archive
By Erin McCusker
For Go! Magazine
W
ESTON — The Weston
Public Library is in a
beautiful building in downtown.
Over the years, the library has
been dedicated to highlight-
ing the history of the area, and
they’ve collected a wonderful
archive of historic photos. The
photos are now digitized and
available for all of us.
Weston Public Library
Director Kathleen Schmidtgall
answered some questions about
the library’s Historical Photo
Archive:
When did the digital photo
archive begin?
We converted our photo
negative collection into a digital
format in 2009.
How did it come to be?
The Weston Public Library
Photo Archive was created from
photos donated to us over a
period of more than 50 years. In
2000, grant funding from Meyer
Memorial Trust made it possible
to restore the entire collection
of historic photos. At that time,
we created photo negatives, and
Erin McCusker is the director of
the Umatilla County Special Library
District.
cataloged and numbered the
images. When the technology
became available, the next step
was digitization of the collection.
Next followed the creation of
an original DVD, “Our Home
Town.” In 2020, we formatted the
collection for the internet, and
the online Weston Public Library
Photo Archive was created and
linked to our website, www.
westonpubliclibrary.com.
What would you like people
to know about this collection
and why?
I’d like folks to know that the
reason for the online database
was to create easier and more
widespread access to these his-
toric photos. The collection con-
tains 413 images, seven maps
and 77 Weston Leader newspa-
per ads from our Weston Leader
archive. These are indexed and
searchable. This was a grant-
funded project, with support at
every step coming from Friends
of Weston Library, AWERE
(Athena-Weston Education and
Resource Enhancement,) Wild-
horse Foundation and Umatilla
County Cultural Coalition. Jerry
Gildemeister of La Grande has
been the technical consultant
for all Weston Public Library
Photo Collection projects.
What is your favorite picture
and why?
There are so many wonderful
photos, but one of my personal
favorites is captioned “Armistice
Day on Weston’s Main Street,
Nov. 11, 1918.” This image
shows a large crowd of people,
dressed in their fi nest, who have
come out to celebrate the end of
World War I. We can see the cars
they were driving, the fountain
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0% d b ing
Erin McCusker/Contributed Photo
The Weston Public Library has a digital archive of historic photos online at
www.weston-publiclibrary.com.
in the middle of the intersection
and some structures that no
longer exist. This is one of many
that we’ve enlarged to hang in
the library.
Are there any stories about
who has accessed the collec-
tion?
A number of former residents
(mostly people who grew up
here and moved away) have
reached out to tell me how much
they appreciate the online ac-
cess to these photos.
Find the archive at www.
weston-publiclibrary.com.
———
Erin McCusker is the district
director of the Umatilla County
Special Library District. Reach
her at 541-276-6449 or
director@ucsld.org.
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