Wisconsin Historical Society Map Digitization Project

1. Wisconsin Historical Society Map Digitization Project Experience: that most brutal of teachers. But you learn, my God do you learn. -C. S. Lewis Laura Farley and Shannon Wilsey

2. Background on the Map Collection • 25,000 maps most pre-1900 • Grant funding from Milwaukee based Caxambas Foundation Wisconsin Historical Society, Image ID: 84124

3. Background on the Map Collection Maps of Wisconsin. Image ID: 90096 Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps. Image ID: 41612 Maps of communities. Image ID 105567

4. Background on CONTENTdm • 2002: • Move away from custom builds • CONTENTdm best candidate Memorial Library under construction, 1950. Image ID: 57843

5. Background on CONTENTdm • 2002-2011: All talk, no action • Poor user experience • No zooming capability • Small images High school debate team, 1944. Image ID: 38484

6. Background on CONTENTdm • Ongoing research: • Sites that got user experience right • Metadata best practices • CONTENTdm Update: • JPEG2000 • Zoom Researching carpet samples, 1970. Image ID: 99089

7. Planning: 2011 Team Members

8. Planning: 2013-2014 Team Members

9. Workflow: All Hands On Deck • Metadata Librarian and Map Cataloger are mostly peripheral • 2-5 students working 10-20 hours each • 2-3 workspaces • Communication is key S.S. Leviathan, 1928. Image ID: 68037

10. Workflow

11. Workflow: Master Spreadsheet • Color Coding: • White: cataloged • Yellow: scanned • Orange: WHI record created • Green: uploaded to CONTENTdm • Red: problem Shells with color wheel, 1828. Image ID: 99701

12. Workflow: Google Docs • Online Google application • Upload, share, and edit easily with multiple workers • Only the creator must have a Google account • Does not require access to network drive • Easy to backup Extra office assistants for birth certificate rush, 1942. Image ID: 13864

13. Map Collection Outreach: Facebook 2 goals: • Increase visibility of the map collection among map enthusiasts • Direct traffic to the rebooted map webpage Wisconsin ethnic map, 1941. Image ID: 62099

14. Facebook Organization Content creators: • Laura, project manager • Susan, map cataloger • Post Tuesday & Thursday Organization: • Google Doc to track posts Helpful Resource: • The Librarian’s Nitty-Gritty Social Media Guide, Laura Solomon League of Women Voters, 1950. Image ID: 64217

15. Growth of Facebook Page • Launched November 25, 2013 to staff and friends • Facebook Insights after 50 followers

16. Wording • Short and to the point • !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! • You’re not a robot • Unified voice Tracto the Talking Robot, 1960. Image ID: 45756

17. Posts Per Week • Staff resources • Material resources • When possible post an image or video • Consistency Counting down to wedding day, 1949. Image ID: 58419

18. Interacting With Others • Be an active follower • Practice good social media etiquette • Be vigilant of activity on your page A white glove event, 1956. Image ID: 11631

19. Balancing Act: Give the People What They Want Mass appeal Quirky Represent the collection Image ID: 93976 Image ID: 99595

20. Is It Worth It? • It depends • Original goal: increase visibility of the map collection and direct traffic to the map webpage Daydreaming, 1929. Image ID: 8576

21. Goal 1: Increase Visibility • Success • 247 followers • 27 Wisconsin communities • 13 states • 6 countries Image ID: 74850

22. Goal 2: Increase Webpage Traffic • 3% of webpage traffic from Facebook • Increased reference requests surrounding maps Image ID: 55433

23. Unexpected Outcome: Staff Enjoyment Staff celebrating WHS’s 100th Anniversary, Image ID: 66591

24. What’s Next: • Change in Facebook reach • Tumblr advantages: • Reblogging • Tagging New computer, 1967. Image ID: 12067

25. Thank you. Questions? Contact us, we’d love to hear from you. Laura Farley laura.farley@wisconsinhistory.org Shannon Wilsey shanwils@gmail.com