University Libraries Press Release

Contact: Melissa Cox Norris, Director of Library Communications, (513) 556-1558 or melissa.norris@uc.edu

University Libraries Offers the World a View of UC's Special Collections

July 24, 2006 – Read the journal of Meriwether Lewis as he explores the territory of the Louisiana Purchase; roam the American West with George Catlin as he documents the daily life of Native Americans; or view prints from Cincinnati’s early publishing industry – all without leaving your desk. These experiences and more are possible by viewing digital collections made available from University Libraries via a new Web site at http://digitalprojects.libraries.uc.edu.

The digital collections include images from the Libraries’ rare and special collections. The images can be viewed, manipulated to zoom in and out and to rotate, and downloaded for inclusion in educational presentations.

“Creating digital collections is an important new initiative to bring hidden collections to life and to create new knowledge,” said Victoria A. Montavon, dean and university librarian.

Other than making library materials available to students, scholars, and researchers around the world, digital collections also help to preserve rare or delicate items as they allow people to view and study these images without touching and possibly damaging them.

The priority when selecting collections for digitization are those that are widely used or that are unique to the university. Digital projects are also chosen based on their ability to be scanned and must include materials in the public domain or that have copyright clearance. University Libraries has created five digital collections to date with plans to include additional projects in the future.

Current Digital Collections Available at http://digitalprojects.libraries.uc.edu:

• The DAAP Digital Image Teaching Collection - These images support a broad spectrum of the visual arts ranging from contemporary performance artists to urban landscapes.
  Note: All but the DAAP Digital Image Teaching Collection are available to the public. The DAAP collection is available for viewing only by UC faculty, students and staff.

• George Catlin: The Printed Works – George Catlin (1792-1872) traveled the North American continent from 1830-1838 to chronicle the people, customs, and traditions of Native American tribes. Catlin's adventures resulted in over 600 portraits and scenes of rituals, hunting, and daily life of over 50 North American tribes.

• Lewis & Clark: A Journey – Celebrate the bicentennial of the expedition that built an American empire and revealed new scientific discoveries in plant and animal life. The site features the first official report and most famous account of the expedition, published in 1814. The first edition of Meriwether Lewis’ journal, edited by Nicholas Biddle, is housed in the UC’s Archives and Rare Books Library and features the first detailed map of the American West.

• McKenney & Hall: History of the Indian Tribes of North America – Housed in UC’s Archives and Rare Books Library, this collection is one of the world's earliest and most extensive collections of Native American portraits. In some instances, the publication holds the only known portrait of a vanished people.

• Art as Image: Prints and Promotion in Cincinnati, Ohio – Cincinnati was a major printing and publishing center from the earliest days of the Old Northwest Territory. The spectacular technological and artistic developments in the 19th-century printing trade nationally were reflected in the Cincinnati printmakers' achievements.

For more information on University Libraries’ digital collections, visit the Web site http://digitalprojects.libraries.uc.edu or contact Alice Cornell, head of the digital projects department, at alice.cornell@uc.edu.

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