Introduce yourself and meet the crowd.loc.gov community.

Hi Crowd!  I’m Lauren Algee, another of the Community Managers for crowd.loc.gov. I’m excited to help lifelong learners and the historically curious out there connect with the Library of Congress and its vast and fascinating collections.

My background is as an archivist and before coming to the Library of Congress I worked at the Dolph Briscoe Center for American History in Austin, Texas, the National Gallery of Art, and the DC Public Library (DCPL).  At DCPL I managed the library’s digital local history collections. I also co-founded the DC Public Library's Memory Lab, a public space for digitization and learning how to care for your personal digital archives. I now serve on the board of the Memory Lab Network and encourage you to see if there’s a Memory Lab in your area!

Hi everyone! I'm Meghan and I'm a Community Manager, too. I'm really looking forward to collaborating, sharing interesting things we find in our collections, and hearing more about what sparks your interest in history. The Library of Congress has such depth of resources and we're thrilled people are keen to help make them more searchable and useful to many people.

Before I joined the Library of Congress, I had the chance to learn from and partner with volunteers at the Smithsonian Transcription Center. I hope you'll explore those projects, as well. My background is as a historian and cultural anthropologist - across my research experiences, I've tried to understand the ways people share information, work together, work through conflict, and use stories and digital spaces to understand and relate to each other.

Can't wait to hear more about what you think of and find in our first challenge: Letters to Lincolnhttps://crowd.loc.gov/campaigns/letters-to-lincoln/!

Hi folks! I'm Elaine and the fourth Community Manager. Along with my colleagues, I am beyond excited to collaborate and learn from you all. Please let us know what you find interesting, what sparks your curiosity or what features you'd like to see in the application.

Prior to joining the Library of Congress, I was working at 18F, an office within the General Services Administration. 18F collaborates with other agencies to improve how government serves the public through technology.

CROWD looks amazing! I can't wait to give it a try.

Hi all. I'm a processing archivist here at NARA, and community manager for the "Researchers Help" space here on History Hub. Having spent the first half of my career working with NARA's photo collections, I am naturally drawn to LC's fabulous collections too. Recently I spent a great deal of time annoying the Prints and Photographs staff with caption submissions for some of the distressingly large number of "no caption" images in the National Photo Co. and Harris & Ewing collections. The most rewarding part was identifying two of NARA's early division chiefs:

                                               LC-H2-B-8017 and 8018 (P&P)

                                                      Roscoe Hill, Division of Classification, ca. 1935

                                             LC-H2-B-8253 (P&P)

                                                    Thomas M. Owen, Division of Accessions, ca. 1935

     With over 30,000 images labeled "no caption" in the Harris & Ewing collection (and many more with such

     informative captions as "Man seated at desk"), this might make an excellent CROWD project for the future!

     Best wishes to everyone involved with this exciting new venture.

Hi everyone.  I'm ShawnMarie from PA.  I have a little bit of a paper problem - in love with all of it.  :-)  My favorite things are women's magazines from the war years, recipes and maps.  I have a degree in Geography but my day job is in IT Data management.  I've always wanted to be a librarian and to help people find things they want to know more about so hoping I can help out this way.

ShawnMarie

Hi everyone! My name is Sheena and I'm from Ohio. I am the director of the Hardin County Historical Museums, Inc. in Kenton Ohio. My favorite things are old pictures and letters. I have a Master of Arts degree in History. I'm really looking forward to being able to contribute!

Hi everyone! I'm Filomena from Portugal and I work in a University Library. I rely like history and everything related to books. I can't even get near a bookshop, it is my weakness, books. All kind of books and stories. And I'm very happy to collaborate with your project.

Hi everyone!

I'm Jennifer and I'm from California.  I'm a scientist, but I also enjoy reading and US history.  I love libraries too and am happy to contribute to a project that will help a major library make more historical US documents more accessible to everyone.  If there are any documents from scientists that need to be transcribed I would be very excited to help out with that as well.

PS, When I was in Washington DC a few years ago I took a tour of the Jefferson building and it was love at first sight

Hi. My name is Henry. I have a lifelong interest in History. I ahe read so much on Lincoln but was disappointed that EVERYBODY wanted to work on his papers and they were done quickly. I have chosen to focus on Mary Church Terrell. Amazing woman. One of the founders of the NAACP. She lived from 1863-1954. I'm learning a lot about Jim Crow and the discrimination African-Americans faced over the years. I have become adept at reading her handwriting so if anybody has questions, feel free to contact me. Among the tips, she frequently does not cross her small t's so they sometimes look like L's. She also will carry over words from one line to the other without a hyphen. If I think of anything else I will post it.

Hi all, I'm a government attorney by profession, but I took up genealogy as a hobby about 20 years ago. In the process of researching my ancestors, I became pretty adept at deciphering the handwriting in old documents. I studied the different styles of 19th century copperplate scripts and learned how to puzzle out the meaning from the scribbles. I hope I can put my somewhat estoteric skills to work for this historical project.

Hi folks --

I live in Durham, NC.  I'm a fan of history and have always loved primary documents.  I've long been a fan of the oral histories and photos from the Depression era that were made available by the LOC fifteen or so years ago. 

I love a challenge and it's interesting to me how quickly my visual system is being retrained to be able to read handwriting again, though I see so little of it now in my day-to-day life. 

So far, two of my favorites are a letter from someone who lost his position as paymaster, begging/demanding to be reinstated (I felt put-off and sorry for him in turns while reading), and the gift of a salmon by a Maine eccentric (and it was jarring to remember that as recently as 150 years ago, salmon was native). 

I look forward to transcribing more of these letters, and things from other collections.  I'd be particularly interested in working on earlier materials after these.

-Christy

Welcome Christy Ferguson, Rebecca M, and Henry Rosenberg!  I'm excited that you've joined us in this transcription adventure and that you bring varied and interesting interest (but uniform enthusiasm) to the Library's collections!

Hello! I'm a social studies and science teacher in southern WV. I was initially drawn to the Lincoln papers, but after discovering the Mary Church Terrell campaign I was hooked. I am particularly interested in early 20th century America and I am inspired by her work. Since French was one of the areas I studied in college (in addition to history and psychology) I have enjoyed transcribing the documents in French, and I wish there was a way to search specifically for these documents. If there is, let me know. Like others, I hope that be assisting with this project I will contribute to history in some small way and learn along the way myself.

Hi, All --

I'm one of those "lifelong learner" types who likes to do a variety of things. I've been a children's and reference librarian, a proofreader, an elementary school supply (substitute) teacher, and crochet designer and teacher, and, most recently, a dedicated transcription volunteer with the Smithsonian Institution's Freemen's Bureau Project.

Glad to be here, too!

Beth

My name is Julianne Mangin, but you can call me Julie.  I retired from the Library of Congress in 2011.  I was a librarian and website developer.  When I arrived in 1998, I was put to work on the online exhibits.  I loved the work.  I was also one of the people who coordinated the look and content of the reading room websites.

In retirement, I have been researching my family history and have written a book, which I am trying to get published.  You can find out about it by going to a URL that is my full name plus .com.  I also research local cemeteries and recently participated in a county survey of known burial sites. I have another website called petcemeterystories dot net where I post articles on the history I have uncovered about Aspin Hill Cemetery for Pet Animals, now known as Aspin Hill Memorial Park.

There are two reasons I have decided to participate in this crowd sourcing endeavor.  The first is because I needed just this kind of help while researching the family history.  This is my way of paying back.  The second is that much of my family story has to do with the many women in my ancestry who were mentally ill patients at state hospitals in New England.  I read in your newsletter that the history of psychiatry is a future project, and I would really like to see what you have.  In the meantime, I am working on the Mary Church Terrell papers, so I will be ready.  Incidentally, I transcribed some letters in French in that collection.  It was a challenge, but I didn't know if you have any other transcribers with that ability.

Julie

Hello everyone! I am a public history grad student who loves documents and just really want to get my feet wet in the world of archives. This looks like it's going to be so much fun! I love research, books, American history, and this is like the best Christmas present ever!

Thanks!

Jess

It looks as though folks have stopped introducing themselves. I think it's great to know a bit about fellow transcribers and reviewers, though, so here I am.

I'm a retired music cataloger from the Library of Congress (which is how I know Julie Mangin). I have worked with manuscripts a bit here and there, and with correspondence in German and English. It's a giant puzzle, and I love being able to decipher handwriting. I've flitted about a bit, from Clara Barton to a few Lincoln letters, to Mary Church Terrell's German diaries (but not the ones in the unreadable script!). It's great fun, and it's nice to meet a bunch of like-minded people. Hope to see more of you as time goes on. It's wonderful to be in on the project as it develops, and perhaps contribute to the process.

Sharon McKinley

Hello everyone - Donna here.

To paraphrase Anne McCaffrey - I'm Scottish, in my 60s, my hair is silver, and the rest is subject to change without notice.

I have, at various times, been a shop assistant, computer programmer, library assistant, technical support rep, secretary, communications manager, web developer, web accessibility specialist and online technical and admin support person. Heh! They do say variety is the spice of life!

Many years ago, when records started to become available online, I started researching our family history, and spent several years decyphering scanned copies of hand-written official records of births, marriages, deaths, census returns, wills, etc. I found a lot of really useful information in the FamilySearch records, and wanting to give something back in thanks to those who transcribed the records that enabled me to uncover my own family's history, I then started getting involved in transcribing records, so that they'd be available for others to search and read. That was also fuelled by my awareness of how difficult (or impossible) it is for someone with less than perfect sight to access the information contained in scanned documents - they rely on transcriptions to be able to read that information. So for some years I've been doing intermittent bursts of transcribing with FamilySearch and other online services.

Then I recently stumbled across a reference to CROWD and the work being done here with these fascinating documents which are of interest and relevance to people not just in the US, but around the world.

And so here I am to add my little bit.

-- Donna

Hello! My name is Erin, and I'm here thanks to someone on Facebook (can't remember who) linking to a blog post (can't remember which) about transcribers being needed for Suffragist documents at the Library of Congress. I'm new to crowd.loc.gov, but not to transcribing: I'm the Senior Cataloger responsible for (among other things) 16th- and 17th-century manuscripts at the Folger Shakespeare Library, so I work with documents being transcribed in Early Modern Manuscripts Online and Shakespeare's World.

The problem with having a job that I love is that it's hard to leave it behind at the end of the work day, and I picked up the bad habit of continuing to putter away at work-related things on evenings and weekends. However, I've recently begun making a concerted effort not to think about work after hours. The enforced change of mental scenery has been good for my well-being, but took away one of my hobbies. Now, thanks to having seen the random blog post, I've got it back!

Reading 19th- and 20th-century cursive is a relaxing change from secretary hand, and I'm enjoying learning about the American women's suffrage movement -- I'm familiar with people and events related to Canadian and British women's rights, but find myself having to do a fair bit of Googling around to figure out who and what are being talked about in these letters. Also, it gives me a kick to see so many Washington, DC, addresses -- yesterday I transcribed a couple of letters that Frederick Douglas wrote to Anna E. Dickinson from a house that I walk past on my way to the bus stop after work.

Hello - I recently stumbled upon the link for CROWD while visiting the LOC and right away my interest was peeked! I have been in search of an additional volunteer opportunity to coincide with my interests in genealogy, history, and sleuthing and it appears transcribing for CROWD projects offers all this and more.

As a young teen family stories from my grandmother were instrumental in guiding me to the world of genealogy. Initially, I deciphered and transcribed data from family sources such as the back of photos (another passion), bible pages and other handwritten documents. Later, working for a telecommunications company allowed me to transcribe unclear script for quality assurance and accurate billing; furthering my deciphering skills. Soon after, the ever-expanding internet opened a wide world of data which often required verification of transcribed information or deciphering handwriting to confirm the accuracy of family members on census forms. In the past several years I taken advantage of opportunities to travel overseas and discover new sources of family data like a recent visit to the Irish Family History Centre in Dublin where I located a potential new family member.

I am excited now to learn more about transcribing and contributing toward the needs of CROWD projects! 

~Deborah (Deb) Hathorn

Hello. When I saw a League of Women Voters post on Facebook about the LOC transcription opportunities for the Suffragists, I was intrigued. With so many documents needing transcription and the current generation of students not even learning cursive, I felt a sense of urgency. A professional writer with corporate and university experience, I have also worked in the public involvement arena as a federal contractor for the Department of Energy. Now retired, I am a docent emerita at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and a volunteer for my local library, where I have taught English as a Second Language and currently work in the vintage and “gently used” bookstore. A few years ago, NARA unearthed a box of what turned out to be Reagan’s lifelong collection of notecards with quotes, jokes, stories and other information he sprinkled in his speeches and writing. No one had known previously of its existence. I was too late to be involved in that project, but who knows what treasures we will uncover through the LOC transcription projects!

Hello everyone!  My name is Terri from DE.  I just have a general interest in history.  I've worked as a medical transcriptionist in the past so transcribing from written documents is slightly different for me since I would normally transcribe from dictated charts; however, the review process is the same.  I'm a bit of a perfectionist and I TRY to let super minor errors go in the interest of time (absence of line breaks EEEEK) just so that the document doesn't have to be re-reviewed after I make my changes....but it's hard!!!!     I think it would be nice to differentiate between documents needing a first review and those that were previously reviewed.

I do tend to "skip around".  I loved the left-handed penmanship contest!  The stories were fascinating.  I'm also enjoying transcribing Carrie Chapman Catt correspondence and Anna Dickinson's legal documents.   I also like to google addresses in the correspondence just to see where these people lived and if the buildings are still standing, etc.  Weird?  I think not!

Thanks for letting me join the community!

Hi everyone! My name is Lauren and I live in Atlanta, GA. I'm here thanks to a tweet by Mental Floss stating that help was needed to transcribe thousands of pages of suffragist documents. I've always been into history, and my grandfather was a genealogist. But, more than anything, I'm obsessed with puzzles of all kinds - jigsaw, crossword, etc., and I'm far too detailed for my own good. Professionally, I'm a quality assurance auditor, which means I audit the work of all the other auditors in my department. 

I enjoy both transcribing and reviewing, and these documents provide a certain insight into history not found elsewhere. I'm also happy that I can contribute to the greater good without leaving my house

Hi! My name is Chloe and I'm a college student from Wisconsin. I found out about this when a former coworker of mine shared a story about it on Facebook. While I'm not going to school for history, I have a passion for history and currently work at a living history museum as a historical interpreter. I visited the LOC back in 2017 and loved it, and I'm happy I can help out, even in a small way.

So far, I've been transcribing and reviewing whenever I can (I'm hoping to work on this a lot before I go back to school!), and I've mainly been focusing on Mary Church Terrell's papers. It is fascinating what I have been learning from reading and transcribing her papers. I'm glad I can help with this project!

Hi Victoria - My name is Linda Edwards and my library work history includes 10 years at the Daughters of the Republic of Texas Research Library at The Alamo in San Antonio, TX  and two years as a senior genealogist of the Daughters of the American Revolution on Washington, D.C.  Needless to say that when I saw this opportunity to volunteer, I jumped on the chance.

I do have a technical question on which I have not found an answer.  I am working on the Alan Lomax collection and have no idea how to handle the correct transcription of the advertisements and comics that I am finding in the newspaper clippings. 

Any guidance will be appreciated.

Many thanks,

Linda Edwards

Hello! I am Sierra Bamiro and I heard about crowd while looking up volunteer opportunities on the LOC website. I took some classes in Library & Information Sciences, which gave me the opportunity to visit the LOC multiple times. I've also worked as an assistant at my university's history department and became interested in history. I look forward to helping the LOC and learning new historical facts!