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G2S Project Code: 2022-WA-91837
State: Washington
Fiscal Year: 2022

Grantee
Washington State Library

Project Director
Director Name: Evan Robb
Director Phone: (360) 704-5228
Director Email: evan.robb@sos.wa.gov

General Information
Title: Washington Digital Heritage
State Project Code: 9550-2321-22
Start Date: 10/01/2022
End Date: 09/30/2023
Abstract: Washington Digital Heritage supports digitization and digital initiatives at libraries. The current project incorporates Washington Rural Heritage, a digitization project that provides online access to historical materials held by more than 150 of Washington’s smallest institutions. In addition, the Northwest DPLA Hub, a metadata node for digital cultural heritage established in 2020, continued to grow records.
State Goal: Goal 2. Preserve and share Washington’s stories using methods and tools that balance accessibility

Budget Information

LSTA

MATCH-State

MATCH-Other

Total

$301,326.13

$0.00

$301,326.13

Intent(s)
Improve users’ ability to obtain and/or use information resources.
History

Activities
Activity Details
Title: Digitization creation by sub-awardees
Narrative: Academic, public, and tribal libraries were invited to apply for digitization sub-awards to capture and preserve archival and special collections. WSL awarded 6 digital projects. 357 items (542 files) from current and past WRH partner libraries were processed and ingested to the Washington Rural Heritage digital repository and metadata was updated for 22 records. Awardees created 4,455 items (6,116 files) for other digital repositories and enhanced metadata for 844 items.
Intent: Improve users’ ability to obtain and/or use information resources.

Activity: Content
Mode: Creation
Format: Digital

Quantity
Number of items digitized: 6,396
Number of items digitized and available to the public: 6,396
Number of physical items: 0
Number of open-source applications/software/systems: 0
Number of proprietary applications/software/systems: 0
Number of learning resources (e.g. toolkits, guides): 10
Number of plans/frameworks: 0

Partner Information

Organization Type of Partner Organization(s):
Libraries: Yes
Historical Societies or Organizations: No
Museums: No
Archives: No
Cultural Heritage Organization Multi-type: No
Preschools: No
Schools: No
Adult Education: No
Human Service Organizations: No
Other: No

Legal Type of Partner Organization(s):
Federal Government: No
State Government: No
Local Government (excluding school districts): No
School District: No
Non-Profit: No
Private Sector: No
Tribe/Native Hawaiian Organization: No

Beneficiaries
Is the activity directed at the library workforce: No
For a targeted group or for the general population: General

Locale
Is the activity state-wide: No
Specific Locations: Yes
Name: Island County Historical Society
Address: 908 NW Alexander St/PO Box 305
City: Coupleville
State: WA
Zip: 98239
Name: Jefferson County Historical Society
Address: 540 Water St
City: Port Townsend
State: WA
Zip: 98368
Name: Pilchuck Glass School Library
Address: 1201 316th St NW
City: Stanwood
State: WA
Zip: 98282
Name: SEATTLE PUBLIC LIBRARY
Address: 1000 4TH AVE
City: SEATTLE
State: WA
Zip: 98104
Name: Washington State University
Address: French Administration Building
City: Pullman
State: WA
Zip: 99164-5910
Name: WHITMAN COUNTY LIBRARY
Address: 102 S. MAIN STREET
City: COLFAX
State: WA
Zip: 99111

Activity Details
Title: Training and consultation
Narrative: Project staff provide training and consultation to library staff and others involved with digitization subgrants or the Northwest Digital Heritage hub. This includes presentations to regional groups and conferences including the Northwest Digital Heritage Contributors quarterly meetings and the Washington Museums Association annual conference, about both programs.
Intent: Improve users’ ability to obtain and/or use information resources.

Activity: Instruction
Mode: Presentation/performance
Format: Combined in-person & virtual

Quantity
Presentation/performance length (minutes): 30
Number of presentations/performances administered: 8
Average number in attendance per session: 25

Partner Information

Beneficiaries
Is the activity directed at the library workforce: Yes
For a targeted group or for the general population: General

Locale
Is the activity state-wide: Yes
Specific Locations: No
Library Types

Public Libraries: 24
Academic Libraries: 6
SLAA: 1
Consortia: 0
Special Libraries: 3
School Libraries: 0
Other: 148

Activity Details
Title: Northwest DPLA Local portal
Narrative: The first multi-state service hub to use DPLA Local, a regionally branded slice of the nationwide DPLA, continues to grow. This year, staff obtained and began testing of a new metadata harvesting software called Combine that will allow for largescale ingest of records to the hub and better integrate large digital collections from participating universities and other institutions.
Intent: Improve users’ ability to obtain and/or use information resources.

Activity: Content
Mode: Description
Format: Digital

Quantity
Number of items made discoverable to the public: 115,208
Number of collections made discoverable to the public: 0
Number of metadata plans/frameworks produced/updated: 0

Partner Information

Legal Type of Partner Organization(s):
Federal Government: Yes
State Government: No
Local Government (excluding school districts): No
School District: No
Non-Profit: No
Private Sector: No
Tribe/Native Hawaiian Organization: No

Public Libraries: 24
Academic Libraries: 6
SLAA: 2
Consortia: 0
Special Libraries: 3
School Libraries: 0
Other: 148

Project Outcomes
Project Outcomes
List any important outcomes or findings not previously reported:
Acquisition of the Combine software will revolutionize the harvesting process for the Northwest Digital Heritage hub and allow the inclusion of significant collections that previously were reluctant to join due to the effort of transferring the records. Project staff look forward to the new opportunities and increased capacity that Combine will provide.
Please briefly describe the importance of these outcomes and findings for future program planning:
Program staff will continue to look for ways to streamline and automate processes for better workflow. As Combine is rolled out, training may be required for participating staff and libraries.
Explain one or two of the most significant lessons learned for others wanting to adopt any facets of this project:
State libraries can and should fulfill the need of smaller cultural heritage institutions to provide online access to their unique special collections. Creation of centralized digital repositories and portals and aggregation services are one way to meet this need.
Do you anticipate continuing this project after the current reporting period ends:
Yes
Do you anticipate any change in level of effort in managing this project:
No
Explain:

Do you anticipate changing the types of activities and objectives addressed by the project:
No
Explain:

Was an evaluation conducted for this project:
No
Was a final written evaluation report produced:
No
Can the final written evaluation report be shared publicly on the IMLS website:
No
Was the evaluation conducted by project staff (either SLAA or local library) or by a third-party evaluator:
Third-Party
What data collection tools were used for any report outcomes and outputs:
Did you collect any media for the data:
What types of methods were used to analyze collected data:
Other:
How were participants (or items) selected:
What type of research design did you use to compare the value for any reported output or outcome:

Exemplary: Yes
Exemplary Narrative

Project Tags: oral history, digitization, digital repository