Political Updates from Maine: A Deep Dive Into Recent Governance Developments
The Maine State Historical Records Advisory Board (MSHRAB) in Augusta, along with various other institutions across Maine, has received significant funding for a range of historical records digitization and preservation projects.
The MSHRAB is set to receive $12,396 for a two-year board planning project (97-002), $54,846 for the continuation of its SHRAB Regrant Project (2001-091), and $9,991 for board administrative support (2002-042). Additionally, the MSHRAB is receiving funds in partial support of its administrative expenses.
The Maine State Archives in Portland is receiving funds to create and administer a regrant program, as well as $85,235 for a project to develop state-wide policies for the identification and retention of permanently valuable electronic records (97-008).
Other institutions benefiting from these funds include Northeast Historic Film in Bucksport, which is receiving $120,433 to transfer, describe, and rehouse seven collections of newsfilm and broadcast videotapes (2000-068), and the Maine Historical Society in Portland, which is receiving $66,585 to arrange and describe unprocessed manuscript collections and to create MARC AMC records (91-096).
The University of Maine System is funding a two-year project for the Franco American Collections Consortium to digitize various historical materials, while the United Society of Shakers in Poland Springs is receiving funds for consultation to evaluate the historical collections of the Sabbathday Lake community (85-124).
The Maine Maritime Museum in Bath is receiving funds for a plan of work to make the museum's archival collections more accessible, as well as for arranging and describing approximately 40-50 percent of its manuscript materials.
Bowdoin College is receiving funding for a three-year project to digitize approximately 148,200 pages of manuscript material from General Oliver Otis Howard, and the President and Trustees of Bates College are receiving funds to preserve and make available the Edmund S. Muskie Papers.
The City of Lewiston is receiving funds for the Bates Manufacturing Company Records Processing Project, and the Northern Maine Development Commission is receiving funds to preserve electronic records in Northern Maine.
The MSHRAB is also receiving funds for a Civil War Sesquicentennial Coordinator, and a regrants program, as well as for a training regrant project (94-090). The Maine State Archives is receiving funds for a program of regrants to local repositories under the Caring for Maine's Historical Records project.
It is worth noting that the major historical records digitization and preservation projects funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) in Maine from 2000 to 2014 are not specifically detailed in the provided search results. However, the NEH has broadly funded numerous digitization and preservation initiatives across U.S. states, focusing on historical newspapers, manuscripts, and archival collections.
For Maine-specific NEH projects from 2000–2014, it is recommended to consult the official National Endowment for the Humanities grant database or archives for detailed records of funded projects by location and year, local Maine cultural institutions, or university libraries that might have collaborated with NEH, and the Maine Memory Network, a well-known state initiative often supported in part by federal grants including NEH.
These funding allocations and projects underscore the commitment to preserving and making accessible Maine's rich historical records for both the public and scholars.
- The University of Maine System's Franco American Collections Consortium will utilize funding for a two-year project to digitize various historical materials, showcasing the intersection of finance and education-and-self-development.
- The Maine State Archives in Portland is receiving funds to create and administer a regrant program, demonstrating the link between technology and lifestyle, as these grants support other institutions in their historical records preservation efforts.
- General news and sports enthusiasts may be interested to know that the Civil War Sesquicentennial Coordinator is among the projects funded by the MSHRAB, emphasizing the importance of historical records in fostering broad understanding of society's past.
