Clerk Sends Local Historic Archives for Preservation

COURT HOUSE — On Wednesday, April 1, the County Clerk’s Office was the site where 89 volumes of archival one-of-a-kind historic records from fifteen municipalities were cataloged and picked up for transportation to Brown’s River Bindery, Inc. of Essex, Vermont for professional conservation treatment, scanning, microfilming and rebinding.
“Each volume in the project is a unique permanent records collection spanning dates from 1843 to 1984. The collections in this project are governing body minutes, ordinances, records of births, deaths and marriages, New Jersey Coast Maps, tax assessment records and oaths,” said Rita Marie Fulginiti, County Clerk, Project Manager.
“This project is a shared service of the county and Avalon, Cape May, Cape May Point, Dennis Township, Lower Township, Middle Township, North Wildwood, Sea Isle City, Stone Harbor, Upper Township, West Cape May, West Wildwood, Wildwood, Wildwood Crest and Woodbine funded by a Public Archives and Records Infrastructure Support Grant,” explained Lizabeth Shay, Assistant Project Manager who heads up the County’s Records and Information Management Office.
On March 24 the Board of Chosen Freeholders approved the contract in the amount of $105,973. Prior to that date each municipal governing body executed an agreement for participation in the project. The grant is funded and administered by the Department of State Division of Archives and Records Management.
“Professional conservators will disbind the 89 volumes by hand, surface clean and deacidify the pages; remove tapes, adhesives and stains and repair tears. Prior to rebinding the volumes will be microfilmed for preservation and scanned for access by PMI Technologies of Cherry Hill, New Jersey. Each volume will be rebound by hand using old world techniques and tools. Each collection will be returned this summer to the Municipal Clerks in custom made archival boxes,” Fulginiti said.