Page 9 - PPL fall 2023 newsletter flipbook_Neat

How do you see the Library growing and/or changing
in the next few years?
Julie: With respect to the Bartlett History Room and our Archives,
the Preservation Committee is currently working on getting items
digitized so that they are available for everyone worldwide. This
is a big initiative, but the good news is we have already started
the process. Plymouth Public Library is a member of Digital
Commonwealth, which allows us to send items to be digitized and
uploaded onto their website. To date, we have had some of our
most used collections – like Town Annual Reports and High School
Yearbooks and some of our most delicate items, allowing us to direct
patrons to the online version to better preserve our items in fragile
condition. While the books in the Bartlett History Room have been
cataloged, we continue to work on cataloging our Archives. Thanks
to the Plymouth Public Library Foundation we recently purchased
special scanners allowing us to scan books, objects, photographs and
slides. We strive to make as much information as possible available
to our patrons. After all that is what libraries are all about – access!

What is your background?
Julie: I entered the world of Library work through a side door.
My undergraduate degree is in History and Archaeology and my
graduate degree is in Historic Preservation. I went on to specialize in
Museum Management and spent 25 years working in historic house
museums and running a preservation carpentry business. When my
kids were little I took a job at the PPL as a part-time Page and fell in
love with our Library and its mission. Within a year I moved into the
Circulation Department and then on to the Reference Department
when the previous historian retired.

I understand the Preservation Committee organizes
the wonderful rotating exhibits that can be found in
the Technology Room on the first floor. What exhibits
are planned for the coming months?

Julie: Our next exhibit will be focusing on a recent donation by
the Crawley family. It’s a wonderful collection of letters, photos and
scrap books covering the time when David M. Crawley, Plymouth
architect, served in WWII. We are hoping to have this exhibit installed
by mid-October, in time for Veteran’s Day.

Cover to Cover Fall 2023 Issue 9