University of Wisconsin-Madison Libraries Magazine | Page 16

The Impact of Digital Collections by Melissa McLimans UW Digital Collections It goes without saying that the State of Wisconsin Collection (http://uwdc.library.wisc. edu/collections/WI/WEMArchive) is at the very heart of the University of Wisconsin’s Digital Collections (UWDC). With 70 separate projects, 745,780 pages, 22,000-plus photographs, maps, and other images, it’s the largest of our collections. With 871,401 user visits in the last year alone, it is also the UWDC’s most accessed online collection. And, with projects coming from such wideranging areas as Beloit, Superior, La Crosse, and Oshkosh, it certainly covers a lot of territory. Many of these projects and much of the content originate within public libraries, historical societies, and UW System campuses, but UWDC has been fortunate to partner recently with two state agencies to expand the State of Wisconsin collection. Projects with Wisconsin Emergency Management and the Department of Natural Resources showcase our state’s history and provide unique research opportunities for students and faculty alike. Additionally, the Wisconsin Board of Commissioners of Public Lands has been a long-time partner with UWDC, making available early plat maps and survey notebooks of the state. Bringing these resources together in UW Digital Collections means that researchers and people with a general interest in Wisconsin history are more able to find a photograph that shows a site from thirty years ago or survey notes from over a century ago. Peter Gorman, Assistant Director for Digital Library and Preservation Strategy, explains, “Our collaborations with other state agencies show how we can support each other’s missions, creating valuable research materials and disseminating them to the widest possible audience within the state and beyond.” Wisconsin Public Land Survey Records http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/SurveyNotes/ Digital Collections http://uwdc.library.wisc.edu/ collections/WI/WEMArchive Wisconsin Public Land Survey Records http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/ SurveyNotes/ Wisconsin’s Historic Natural Resources Photos http://uwdc.library.wisc.edu/ collections/wi/DNRphotos Wisconsin Emergency Management Images and Historic Materials http://uwdc.library.wisc.edu/ collections/WI/WEMArchive It makes sense that some of the earliest records related to Wisconsin state history are part of one of UWDC’s earliest state Above: Plat Map for T7N R9E Left: General Dwight Eisenhower fishing, 1946 Wisconsin’s Historic Natural Resources DNR0082 16 | LIBRARIES Fall 2015 University of Wisconsin–Madison | 17 Libraries Partnering, Presenting, and Preserving Wisconsin’s History: Inset: Oshkosh1889 From Randall, Geo. A. / Illustrated atlas of Winnebago County, Wisconsin : containing outline map of the county, map of each township in the county, with village and city plats. Also maps of the world, United States and state of Wisconsin, together with other valuable information.