The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) will digitize 200,000 of its historical documents and images over the next year, creating a vast on-line research warehouse for the American public.
So far NARA has made 5,300 historical items available on the Internet as part of its electronic access pilot project. The material includes Civil War photographs by Mathew Brady, photographs of the Kennedy White House, and U.S. Information Agency reports on American involvement in the war in Vietnam.
"The electronic access project will enable anyone, anywhere with a computer connected to the Internet to search descriptions of NARA's nationwide holdings and view digital copies of its most popular documents," said Archivist John Carlin.
A NARA spokeswoman said the agency held focus groups around the country and learned that people wanted access to historical documents without having to trek to Washington or one of the presidential libraries.
DoxSys, Inc., of Bethesda, Md., is handling the project contract, and Micrographic Specialties, Inc., of Beltsville, Md., is doing the actual scanning.
"It is a massive process," the spokeswoman said. "These are not all just 8-by-10 glossies."
NARA's holdings run from old photographs to handwritten documents to stapled reports. Many of the materials NARA stores require special handling.
The agency is monitoring the pilot project to evaluate if it is worth the effort, the spokeswoman said.
NEXT STORY: DOE Details Security Problems