Indiana State University Newsroom

Wabash Valley Visions & Voices Digital Memory Project will mark a decade of Hoosier historical preservation at its anniversary kick-off event, 5-8 p.m. April 22, at the Vigo County Public Library.

A collaborative effort spanning six counties and including West Central Indiana's libraries, museums, cultural organizations and community groups, Wabash Valley Visions & Voices (WV3) works to preserve the region's history in print, image and sound.

Terre Haute Mayor Duke Bennett and Vigo County historian Mike McCormick will be the evening's featured speakers. Following their comments, attendees can visit the WV3 partners' booths and learn more about their collections.

Partners who will be participating in the kick-off event are: Native American Museum, Lost Creek Preservation and Restoration Foundation, Wabash Valley Genealogy Society, Indiana State University, Vigo County Public Library, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, Educational Heritage Association, Sullivan County Public Library, Sullivan County Historical Society, Rockville Public Library, Knox County Public Library and the Vigo County Historical Society.

The event is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served.

In 10 years, WV3 has amassed 160,000 items from 21 partners and 44 collections. Bennett and Indiana Gov. Mike Pence recently declared April 22 as Wabash Valley Visions & Voices Day.

While much of WV3's collection includes artifacts, photographs, and documents from the distant past, the partners are also interested in recent history, such as modern and digital documents and photographs.

The public is invited to have their documents digitized during the following community scan days:-- May 3: Sullivan County Public Library/Historical Society Scan Day in Carlisle, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.-- May 24: Vigo County Public Library/Wabash Valley Genealogy Society at VCPL, 1-4 p.m.-- June 7: Knox County Public Library Scan Day in Vincennes, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.-- June 14: Princeton Public Library Scan Day in Princeton, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. (Central Time)

To access the free digital collection of artifacts, administrative and personal papers, manuscripts, photographs, texts, yearbooks, maps, oral histories and other audio/video files, go to http://visions.indstate.edu.

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Contact: Cinda May, special collections chair at Indiana State University's Cunningham Memorial Library and project director of Wabash Valley Visions and Voices, 812-237-2534 or Cinda.May@indstate.edu

Writer: Libby Roerig, media relations assistant director, Office of Communications and Marketing, Indiana State University, 812-237-3790 or libby.roerig@indstate.edu