Moving into the next era…

Here at the museum, there’s always something to keep us busy. If we aren’t taking people through one of our historic buildings or helping researchers look up records in our archives we’re always finding something that needs doing!

One of the projects that has been ongoing here at the museum is digitizing our collections. For the most part, this is done as we re-inventory; we record an item and its location, take a picture of it, and then enter both into our museum management computer program. (See our more detailed post about our inventorying effort here).

But, not all of the museum’s collections are 3D artifacts and so aren’t included in our efforts to re-inventory. The Dearborn Historical Museum boasts an extensive archives in the McFadden-Ross House. Currently, our archives serves the Dearborn community by facilitating research and providing a historic look at Dearborn and its people. One of our goals for digitizing our collections, including the archives, is making it easier for people to access them. The viability of a small museum is tied to how well it makes itself available to the public. Updating our digital records is just the first step. The next step is getting it available for viewing for members over the internet. It would be so fantastic to be able to share so much of our collection with people so easily and to be able to share our history with a much wider audience.

Updating the museum is not just confined to digitizing our collections. It also means making sure we are providing programs and exhibits that are interesting and informative to everyone; from children to adults, Dearborn residents to out-of-towners.

To address this incentive, the museum has been working on many new and exciting events. In this year alone, the museum has added many events and even brought back popular ones. The most exciting of these events is the Dearborn Historical Museum’s First Annual Beer Tasting! The Beer Tasting will feature Michigan brewery Kuhnhenn with select beers and wines and Detroit BBQ for all kinds of delicious food. Visitors will be able to try all kinds of great beer, wine, root beer (for the kids or those who don’t drink) and food and listen to a live band. We’re hoping this event is a popular one and will be around for years to come!

Through these efforts, the museum is increasing its visibility and its accessibility. It’s so exciting to be here during this time. Our history is meeting our present technology to propel us into the future!