UMaine COVID-19 Contemporary Archive materials featured in new, statewide exhibit

Materials from the UMaine COVID-19 Community Archive, compiled by Raymond H. Fogler Library’s Special Collections, have been included in a new collaborative online exhibit, ”It’s Been a Year: Selections from Community COVID-Era Collections.”

Many archivists and librarians have been collecting primary source materials related to their communities’ experiences of the COVID-19 pandemic. These cultural heritage professionals formed the Maine Contemporary Archives Collaborative, a network that connects digital archives projects from across the state. To mark one year of COVID-19, members of the collaborative developed this online exhibit.

The exhibit features artwork, photographs, writing and recordings representing communities throughout Maine from Aroostook to York counties. The Maine Contemporary Archives Collaborative seeks to inspire people to create and submit their own reflections and materials to the project in their area. Participating organizations will preserve and provide access to contributed materials to serve as primary-source records for researchers, students and community members. 

The Maine Contemporary Archives Collaborative works to collect, preserve and provide access to materials related to Maine community members’ experiences of current events. Fogler Library Special Collections has been an active participant in this project, a DigitalMaine initiative supported by the Maine State Library and made possible with federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) funds received from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. 

For more information, contact Matthew Revitt, matthew.revitt@maine.edu or Maine Contemporary Archives online.