Indiana State University Newsroom

Wabash Valley Visions and Voices is ready to celebrate its fifth anniversary.

After being established in April 2004, the digital memory project had its coming out party in 2005 when it reached 1,000 images collected. Now after five years, more than 57,000 images contributed by 24 partners organized into 36 collections reside in the database.

"The mission is to provide access to the history and cultural heritage of the Wabash Valley and preserve images and documents in digital format," said Cinda May, project coordinator and Indiana State University assistant librarian, about the project.

Visions and Voices provides free access to the historical and cultural memorabilia through its Web site at http://visions.indstate.edu/. The searchable database holdings include artifacts, manuscripts, photographs, oral histories and personal papers as Visions and Voices pursues its motto of "preserving the past and the present for the future."

The five-year celebration kicks off with observances by the Clinton Public Library and Little Italy Festival Town from Aug. 31 to Sept. 5.

"Each partner will showcase its collection within the project and have information about the project as a whole," May said.

Also there will be opportunities for community members to bring items to be scanned and become part of the project during some of the celebration activities. Scanning will be available during the Seelyville Street Festival on Sept. 20, at the Educational Heritage Association's booth during Family Learning Day on Sept. 26 and the Lost Creek Grove Social on Oct. 11.

The anniversary celebration will culminate on Nov. 5 with a party at ISU's Cunningham Memorial Library and will feature the ISU partners within Visions and Voices.

Travel Through Time with Wabash Valley Visions & Voices Fifth Anniversary Tour schedule:
Aug. 31-Sept. 5 Clinton Public Library/Little Italy Festival Town
Sept. 16-19 Sullivan County Public Library and Sullivan County Historical Society / Corn Festival
Sept. 19 Native American Museum / Archaeology Day
Sept. 19 Knox County Public Library, Vincennes
Sept. 20 Town of Seelyville Street Festival / Community Scan Day
Sept. 24-26 Clabber Girl Museum / Terre Haute Street Fair
Sept. 25-27 Rose-Hulman Logan Library / Homecoming
Sept. 26 Educational Heritage Association / Family Learning Day / Community Scan Opportunity
Oct. 11 Lost Creek Grove Social / Community Scan Opportunity
Nov. 1 Vigo County Historical Society / Open House at the Museum
Nov. 5 Indiana State University's Cunningham Memorial Library

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Contact: Cinda May, Wabash Valley Visions and Voices Digital Memory Project, project manager, at 812-237-2534 or cinda.may@indstate.edu
Writer: Jennifer Sicking, Indiana State University, assistant director of media relations, at 812-237-7972 or jennifer.sicking@indstate.edu