Grant to help Hot Springs library's preservation

By Curt Nettinga, Hot Springs Star | Tuesday, August 26, 2008

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HOT SPRINGS – Helen Magee dedicated a large part of her life to the gathering and cataloging of bits of historic information relating to Hot Springs and Fall River County.

Now, thanks to a little extra effort by staff at the Hot Springs Public Library, her work will be cared for and preserved correctly.

Last week, the Hot Springs Public Library was one of more than 750 libraries and museums nationwide – and eight in South Dakota – selected to receive “The Connecting to Connections Bookshelf,” a collection of books, DVDs and Internet support designed to give the best possible direction in the preservation of their priceless artifacts.

Head librarian Cindy Messenger said the credit for the grant should go to Dawn Johnson, an employee at the library who completed the grant application and made sure it was submitted on time.

“I was informed by the South Dakota State Library of the grant opportunity and Dawn took it from there,” Messenger said recently, while sitting in the newly organized Helen Magee Resource Room in the library.

Johnson said the grant requested that she describe the library's collection, including the primary focus of the collection.

“Our focus for this room is Hot Springs, Fall River County and South Dakota,” Messenger said.

The Connecting to Connections Bookshelf will offer access to information and preservation tips on many different mediums. Traditional paper and film are included of course, as are newer mediums such as floppy discs. But there is also information on preserving pottery, textiles, and even buildings.

“The Institute of Museum and Library Services announced the grants and they recognize that the best place to house local collections is in local libraries and museums,” Messenger said.

“The information we will be receiving is the same as that used at the Smithsonian and the National Historical Society to preservation; it’s the same process,” Johnson said. “No matter what it is, we should end up with a book or a DVD or both on everything.”

The primary focus in the library is paper – both book and newsprint – and film, but others in the area may have different things they need help preserving.

“Tell people that we work and play well with others,” Messenger said. “We want to share this information with other organizations in the area, to help them preserve their artifacts correctly.”

“Not just other organizations,” Johnson said. “If somebody has something like Grandma’s wedding dress for instance, and wants to know the right tissue paper to wrap it in, we will be able to tell them.”

Messenger said that, over the past year, many volunteer hours by Johnson, Barbara Trumbull and others have turned a mass of random boxes into a cataloged and organized resource room of local history.