Jackson County, Indiana, History & Picture Archive
The archive itself has digital versions of several books, including The History of Jackson County, Indiana, published by Brant and Fuller in 1886; the 1900 and 1915 city-county directories; early yearbooks from several county schools; several brochures long out-of-print; and photographs dealing with dozens of subjects.
The material presently online includes a few dozen photographs, the 1886 History of Jackson County published by Brant and Fuller, the 1900 Seymour City and Business Directory and the 1915 Directory of the City of Seymour, Indiana : Towns of Brownstown, Crothersville and Medora and of All Townships in Jackson County, Indiana : Together with a business and street directory in the city of Seymour, Indiana.
Eventually the photographs will cover as many areas of the county’s past as possible, as completely as possible, and will include other publications no longer generally available. These would include other histories and more school yearbooks. Being processed for this Web site are many photos of early schools and some of the classes that met in them.
You may click on the Books or Pictures link at the top of the Archive Home page to view a list of respective kinds of materials. The books are listed by title.
The 1886 history is searchable while the directories are in alphabetical order (plans are to make them searchable too). The pictures are by category and eventually may be searchable either through the Web site or through library catalog records. See Using & Searching the Archive for more information.
Five Jackson County organizations applied for and received a Library Services and Technology Act grant to develop the archive in digital format for pictorial and other endangered materials related to the history of the county. Support for the project came from the Institute of Museums and Library Services under provisions of the LSTA, administered by the Indiana State Library. The present collection is only a beginning of relevant materials that could be added.
Plans are being made to recruit and train volunteers to help with the project in the autumn of 2002.
The project originated at the Jackson County Public Library, which was supported in seeking funding by the Jackson County Genealogical Society, the Jackson County Historical Society, the Brownstown Public Library, and the Seymour Heritage Foundation. Other organizations and individuals also participated generously in collecting and identifying the material. A list of those who contributed pictorial material appears elsewhere.
Most digital archive projects arise from an existing collection of photographs that already are cataloged. In Jackson County no central collection existed and many of the original photographs have been lost or are rapidly deteriorating. In many cases the only known images remaining from the originals are copies and sometimes copies of copies with much of the original quality diminished. At the same time individuals opened their photo albums and shoeboxes to offer never-before-public pictorial views of the county and its residents.
As they are processed over a period of time, those photos now will be displayed on the Internet for the enjoyment of all interested in the heritage of Jackson County. Each photo or group of photos has a story that can be developed as someone has time and interest to dig for it.
You may contact the project coordinator.
Hosted by the Jackson County Public
Library, Seymour, Indiana
Copyright © 2002 Jackson County Digital Archive Project. All rights reserved.
Revised: June 22, 2002
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