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North Carolina State Archives

Preservation Week: Redesigned digitalpreservation.ncdcr.gov launched today!

Apr 22nd, 2013
by Lisa (Digital Information Management Program).
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It’s national Preservation Week! Stay tuned to the blog for posts about all things digital preservation.

Today we’re starting BIG, as we unveil our redesigned digitalpreservation.ncdcr.gov. Now streamlined and mobile friendly, we hope our popular digital preservation website will continue to be your first stop in learning how you can keep your digital files accessible as long as possible. This site is a joint project of the State Library of North Carolina and the State Archives of North Carolina. Want to know more about it? Keep reading below…

Digitalpreservation.ncdcr.gov redesign screenshot

Why do we have this site?

The State Library and State Archives have long been stewards of North Carolina print state government publications and records. Since the first state employee began using a computer, our responsibility has extended to the digital.  We work hard to take care of that content according to industry best practices. Because digital preservation starts when you create a document (before it ever enters the Archives or Library), we also try to educate our customers about those best practices in an approachable way.

To help accomplish this in a cost-effective manner, in 2010 we launched digitalpreservation.ncdcr.gov. Now, it’s updated to make it even more approachable and flexible.

Who’s your audience?

Although we specifically hope state agency employees will find the site useful, it can be a starting point for anyone new to digital preservation.

What will I find there?

Start with the “Create” and “Manage” pages for the most fundamental first steps in managing digital files. Throughout the website, you’ll find hand-picked suggestions for how to learn more about digital preservation – from tutorials, to webinars, to great sources to follow on social media.

If you want to know what kinds of policies may apply to you as a state agency employee or are interested in examples of digital preservation-related policies, check out the aptly named Policies section. Finally, the “Presentations” page shows slide decks from grant-funded* talks we’ve given about digital preservation, digitization, and state government information.

But … huh?

It can be a tricky subject, digital preservation. But we’re here to help! Contact us at digital.info@ncdcr.gov or tweet us @digpres411 and we’re ready to answer your questions.

~

*Creation of this site was supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the federal Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA), as administered by the State Library of North Carolina.

The History of Apprenticeships in North Carolina (part 3)

Feb 18th, 2013
by Genealogical Services.
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Apprentice and master

Courtesy of History.org

Today’s post is the last of the series on apprentice bonds. On January 21, 2013, I talked about the history of apprenticeships in North Carolina. Last week on February 11, 2013 I talked about laws regarding apprenticeships. Today I want to share some examples of what you might find in apprentice bond records.

In 1770, a free African American child born out of wedlock was bound out in Granville County.  Below is an excerpt from the record.

Dicey Bass Apprentice Bond, Granville County 1770

Dicey Bass Apprentice Bond, Granville County 1770. North Carolina State Archives call number C.R.044.101.7

From this, we learn that Dicey Bass was base born – this is also referred to as a bastard or born out of wedlock. This information leads us to another source of information for Dicey by looking at the Bastardy Bonds located in the North Carolina State Archives. (Note: Bastardy Bonds are bonds against the mother so one would need the mothers name. Often they were filed when the child was an infant or while the mother was still pregnant.) We learn that she was mulatto and my prior research on this family shows that she was a free African American during this time. Also, we learn her mother is Lovey Bass and that Dicey is about 4 years old. Another clue that she is a free African American is that she is bound out until age 21. Remember from last week, the 1762 law stated all white females were only bound until age 18, all other females until age 21.

In 1787, a girl in Granville County was bound out. This child was only 1 year old, and surprisingly not the youngest I’ve seen bound out.

Betsey Lankford Apprentice Bond, Granville County, 1787

Betsey Lankford Apprentice Bond, Granville County, 1787. North Carolina State Archives call number C.R.044.101.7

From this, we learn not only her age, but the month, day, and year she was born (October 3rd the previous year, which was 1786). The reason why she was bound out is not said. To learn that information it would be good to check through the Civil Action Papers in the North Carolina State Archives to see if there is more information.

Leaving Granville County and moving south to Richmond County, there is a bond dated 1870.

Manda Griffin Apprentice Bond, Richmond County 1870

Manda Griffin Apprentice Bond, Richmond County 1870. State Library of North Carolina microfilm call number C.082.10001

Manda Griffin is an orphan age 16 and she is bound to Benjamin Griffin. Since she is an orphan, this may be an uncle, older brother, cousin, etc. Further research would need to be done to determine the relationship. A good place to start in this case is with Civil Action Papers located in the North Carolina State Archives. Although we don’t know exactly how old she is to the day, we can see that she is 16 years old and 9 months. The bond is from October 1870, so we can determine her to have been born around February 1854. We can also determine she is white since the age listed as the the end of her apprenticeship is 18.

This is a petition to the court to bind out a child named William Red (or possibly Reed or Reid) in Richmond County.

William Red or Reed Apprentice Bond, Richmond County 1900

William Red/Reed, Petition to Apprentice, Richmond County 1900. State Library of North Carolina microfilm call number C.082.10001

From the petition we can determine that the mother is Ellen Red who is an “idiot”, that the child William is illegitimate, and he is age 12. In the actual bond (not pictured) dated September 3, 1900, the only information given is his name and age. This is an example of extra information you might learn by going through Civil Action Papers as well.

Finally, the original records are located at the North Carolina State Archives. The Archives have also created microfilm versions of some of the apprentice bonds. These microfilms are available in our library for Interlibrary Loan if you are a North Carolina Resident. Check the catalog of the  Government & Heritage Library. Use the county and the word apprentice as your search terms (for example: “Granville County Apprentice”) to see what is available in our library.

In addition, we do have some books that provide abstracts of apprentice bonds for various counties.  Some search results from our online catalog may be microfilm and some may be books.  None of our genealogy books circulate via Interlibrary Loan.

If you are not a North Carolina resident and do not know when or even if your ancestor was bound out as an apprentice, one other possible location for microfilm records is the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. Visit your local Family History Center and you can request any microfilm in their catalog.

Finally, if you would like to contact GHL for assistance with looking in a book of ours for apprentices, please view the following information before making your request: http://statelibrary.ncdcr.gov/ghl/faq.html#genealogy. To request copies of documents from the State Archives, please view their website for specific guidelines to follow based on your residency: http://www.archives.ncdcr.gov/mail.htm.

The History of Apprenticeships in North Carolina (part 2)

Feb 11th, 2013
by Genealogical Services.
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Apprentice and Master

Courtesy of History.org

This week is a continuation of the series on Apprenticeships in North Carolina.  Previously, I talked about some general information related to Apprentice records.  This week I will talk about the laws that regulated the apprentice system.  The system of apprenticeships are rooted in Medieval time, the practice continued in North Carolina and still exists today.

In the book Labor of Innocents by Karin L. Zipf,  the author begins with discussing the most commonly bound children – orphaned children (and remember, orphan then meant only the father had to die – the mother could still be alive), children born out of wedlock, and free black children.  Another group the author does not mention is in 1715, children who were born of both white and black children were bound out as well.

The courts left records called apprentice bonds as well as entries in the county’s civil action papers which often said something along the lines of “to prevent the child from becoming a burden on the county [once they reach adulthood].”  In my eyes, I see the apprentice system in North Carolina before the 1900s as a form of social welfare.  And not all orphans, children born out of wedlock, or free black children were bound out – only those whose families were not able to fully care for them.  Often these types of apprenticeships were forced, but it was not uncommon for children who resided in rural areas to voluntarily enter an apprenticeship.  One things the laws stipulated is that apprentice masters must teach their wards to reach or write or “cause to teach them to read or write” (in other words potentially hire a private tutor).  (more…)

NC ECHO Project Makes Local History Searchable, Accessible Online

Jan 29th, 2013
by Michelle (ncpedia).
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NC ECHO logoResearchers, students, and history buffs alike may now search and access local history collections across North Carolina with a single search box thanks to a collaborative project led by the North Carolina Digital Heritage Center, NC LIVE, and the State Library of North Carolina.

NC ECHO, a new website available at http://ncecho.org, was created in order to expand access to unique local heritage collections previously scattered across a multitude of websites and North Carolina institutions.   NC ECHO enables users to search across thousands of digitized and “born-digital” historic materials, including a wide variety of books, photographs, maps, family histories, state documents, newspapers and other materials from cultural heritage institutions around North Carolina, including the NC Digital Collections from State Library of North Carolina and State Archives of North Carolina. The collections available through NC ECHO include a diverse array of materials by and about the people, places and history of North Carolina.

A previous program by the same name was run out of the State Library of North Carolina from 1999-2012, with the intent to identify and digitize local cultural heritage collections.  The newly revived NC ECHO program continues with the same spirit, to build connections and improve access to these collections of historic materials.  Over the coming year, the North Carolina Digital Heritage Center will continue to work with cultural institutions across North Carolina to add new materials to this statewide search.

A link is provided to an archived version of the online NC ECHO institutional directory. Plans are underway to have the directory online again soon through the Department of Cultural Resources’ North Carolina Connecting to Collections website.

To use NC ECHO, you may visit http://ncecho.org, and search based historical interests, places, or people.  All of the collections available through the NC ECHO search are freely available online to all users, regardless of their location.

View the full press release on the NC LIVE and NC Department of Cultural Resources websites.

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