Tuesday, January 21, 2014

27 boxes down! 2 more series to go!

This past Saturday Jeana, Everett, Cyndi, Dan and even Dan's wife and my mom came out to continue sorting archival subject "Ligonier People." We divided this subject into several series including "Beverforden family," "Churches," "Perry Township Home Economics Club," "Ligonier Regulators," and well, the list goes on and on! We've sorted piles of paper neatly into 27 tidy archival boxes so far. Nothing is more satisfying than lining the boxes up at the end of the day and soaking it all in!

While I think we've ordered enough letter-sized archival boxes and folders, I do think we'll need some additional archival supplies. If you'd like to donate one or more of the following to our project, please shoot me an email and I'll be happy to coordinate the donation!

  • Post it notes: just regular old 3x3 Post its in whatever color you can find. 
  • Plastic paper clips: (we probably need about 1,000 or more) 
  • Acid free paper to sandwich acidic photos (for now) and highly acidic newspaper clippings.
  • Archival box labels: Gaylord ML0600 acid-free shipping labels. 
  • Legal-sized archival folders: Gaylord AF200HW folders. 
We still have four more workshops scheduled for this spring and two more subject collections left to sort. In addition, we have several scrapbooks, ledgers, and other bound volumes to get through. Wish us luck, but better than that, come join us in our cataloging efforts in February!

Saturday, January 11, 2014

Indiana's historic synagogues are truly loved

Maggie of the Jewish Federation of St. Joseph Valley just sent me this wonderful video clip of the Sons of Israel synagogue in South Bend and the restoration work that was done there over the past few years. The synagogue is now a shop for baseball paraphernalia, but it has been immaculately restored and cared for.

The synagogue was built in 1901, making it the third-oldest synagogue still standing in Indiana (our very own Ahavas Sholom is the second-oldest), and boasts an incredible sanctuary, almost castle-like pillars, and an impressive facade. I have yet to visit the synagogue, but I have a feeling I will be going this summer to check out the building, see a baseball game and hopefully, get a kosher hot dog! I'm sure I can persuade my mom to come along... that won't be difficult!