Insights

The How & Why of Digital Preservation

Our society has placed great importance on preserving our past. For centuries we’ve built repositories to store and organize historical materials. These archives have ensured that primary sources remain available…

How to Fundraise with a Digital Museum

Digitally preserving your archival materials provides a multitude of benefits. Your history is saved for future generations — pretty important, if you ask us. But digitally preserving an archive also…

5 Ways to Save Your Chapter’s History

History is happening now — right this second. Your stories matter. Future generations will want to understand their chapter’s legacy and how they fit into the bigger picture. In a…

HistoryIT’s Year in Review

In 2022 we’ve grown, traveled and had a lot of fun, but most importantly we saved history. We’re incredibly proud of our team that made all of this possible. Our…

How PIKE Used History to Increase Donations by 790%

We often hear our friends in the Greek industry say preserving their history is essential to the organization’s future, but they’re not sure if they can rally the support of…

Seeking Grant Funding for Digital Museums

History is everywhere and you can be surprised what you can learn from your archives. This is especially true for our work with fraternities and sororities. While many assume their…

Zeta Psi Commits to Digitally Preserving their Past for Future Generations

HistoryIT and Zeta Psi are excited to announce their partnership to save the fraternity’s 175 years of history. By working with the innovative digital preservation company, the organization will not…

Sorority History is Women’s History

There are truly so many unique ways to study history. Our work with sororities has reminded us that informative and complex stories can be found in the most unexpected of…

Past Masters: HistoryIT Celebrates 11 Years of Saving History

Past Masters is HistoryIT’s new vlog series created to offer a more visual and personal account of our history saving journeys. From the beginning, we wanted HistoryIT to be an…

Hidden Heroes at the Junior League of Fort Worth

One of the most rewarding parts of my job is when archives reveal stories about an organization that are not generally known to the public. Digitizing that information and making…

Junior League of Fort Worth Launches Organization’s First Digital Museum

Women’s Charitable Organization Partners with HistoryIT to Save 90+ Years of Giving Back FORT WORTH, TX (February 1, 2022) — Junior League of Fort Worth has launched the first digital…

HistoryIT: A Year In Numbers

In 2021 we accomplished many things, but most importantly we remained 100% committed to saving history.

Our History is Our Memory

The world of history is deeply intertwined with the world of memory. Part of the reason I’m so passionate about saving history is that I witness how easily it can…

Hidden History: WWII WASPs

When we conjure thoughts about the roles individuals played during World War II, we often think of men on the frontlines and women at home working in factories. We often…

Why Metadata Magic Matters

Data about data — it’s so meta. Metadata are terms used to describe an archival asset — names, dates, location, condition or any relevant information about the item. Traditionally, historians…

Hidden History: Stacia Hookom Gollihar

One of the most fulfilling parts of our jobs at HistoryIT is sparking the curiosity in someone to go explore a piece of history previously unfamiliar to them. The accessibility…

Making Muhammad Ali’s Legacy Accessible 

“Bigger than boxing. Larger than life.”  Those are the words announcing the September 19th premiere of the new Ken Burns documentary on PBS about Muhammad Ali. As the PBS website…

Pi Kappa Alpha Preserves Over 150 Years of Fraternal History

Fraternity Modernizes Archival Experience with Interactive Digital Museum PORTLAND, ME (August 11, 2021) — HistoryIT and Pi Kappa Alpha are excited to share the launch of the Fraternity’s digital museum. PIKE’s…

Alpha Phi Sets Goal for Chapters to Preserve Entire Women’s Fraternity’s History

As Part of 150th Celebration, Alpha Phi Engages HistoryIT to Save Every Story EVANSTON, IL (August 18, 2021) — Today, Alpha Phi launches Beta Gamma’s Digital Chapter Museum — their first of…

The Real Cost of Open-Source Collections Management

If you were to take some time to walk around and ask people if they believed anything is free, the overwhelming majority would answer no. Most of us understand that…

Meet a History Saver: Daniel Orr

As HistoryIT celebrates its 10th Anniversary in 2021, we want to take the time to share how amazing our team of history savers is. In this blog series, you’ll get…

How to Preserve Your Collegiate Chapter Years

Back-to-school season is an exciting time. It marks the beginning of what will surely be a memorable year filled with unique moments, big decisions and the inevitable late-night study sessions.…

Hidden History: Cleora Clark Wheeler

Today, roughly 1.1 million businesses in the United States are owned by women — making up just 19.9% of companies in the country. HistoryIT is proud to be one of…

Alpha Phi’s Digital Museum Receives Industry Award

Every year the Fraternity Communications Association (FCA) presents awards to fraternities and sororities for excellence in communication ranging from best alumni/alumnae engagement to social media engagement, annual report and so…

Past Masters: Preserving LGBTQ+ History

Past Masters is HistoryIT’s new vlog series created to offer a more visual and personal account of our history saving journeys. From the beginning, we wanted HistoryIT to be an…

Meet a History Saver: Dana Barron

As HistoryIT celebrates its 10th Anniversary in 2021, we want to take the time to share how amazing our team of history savers is. In this blog series, you’ll get…

Importance of Preserving LGBTQ+ History

“Who controls the past controls the future.   Who controls the present controls the past.” This quote, from George Orwell’s 1984, refers to the concept that past events continue to exist…

Ali Center Launches New Digital Museum and Archives as Part of Ali Festival

First Online Exhibit Entitled “Ali and Neiman: A Friendship in Art” Launched Today in Recognition of What Would Have Been LeRoy Neiman’s 100th Birthday Digital Archives Will Expand Global Reach…

Hidden History: Baseball, Beer & Fire

One of the joys of studying history is stumbling across surprising stories. The tangents we go off on and the rabbit holes we fall down are what feed our curious…

Future-Proofing Your Composites

Composites are a defining feature of Greek life. Each year young men and women have their photos taken to be collectively displayed in chapter houses, to have prints made for…

Closing Your Chapter House for Summer

It’s hard to believe, but the academic year is coming to end, meaning that sorority and fraternity chapter houses are once again preparing to pack up for the summer. Universities…

How to Preserve Your Pandemic Experience

In my recent vlog on “Preserving the Year We’d Rather Forget,” I talked about the importance of taking a moment to pause and reflect on the last twelve months. As …

Past Masters: Preserving the Year We Want to Forget

Past Masters is HistoryIT’s new vlog series created to offer a more visual and personal account of our history saving journeys. From the beginning, we wanted HistoryIT to be an…

How to Spring Clean Your Collection — Thoughtfully

Spring is in the air, which means that people and organizations across the country are beginning to do some deep cleaning. The phrase “out with the old, in with the…

Meet A History Saver: Donny Lowe

As HistoryIT celebrates its 10th Anniversary in 2021, we want to take the time to share how amazing our team of history savers is. In this monthly blog series, you’ll…

Hidden History: Virginia Hall and the Often-Lost Histories of Women

This blog post is part of a series exploring the surprising places that we discover history. We often think of museums, historical societies, and libraries as the sole repositories of…

Black Sororities and Fraternities Provide an Important Lens for U.S. History

Our newly appointed first African American and Asian American Vice President of the United States, Kamala Harris, is also the first graduate of an HBCU (historically Black colleges and universities)…

HistoryIT Celebrates a Decade of Saving History

The innovative technology company continues to lead in digital archival preservation PORTLAND, ME (February 10, 2021) — HistoryIT, a transformative technology and services company, is kicking off their ten-year anniversary…

Ten years of entrepreneurial history saving

HistoryIT’s ten-year anniversary this month has given me cause to look back and reflect on how we got here. It’s not a typical entrepreneur story, for sure, but HistoryIT has…

HistoryIT Past Masters: Ten Years of Saving History

Past Masters is HistoryIT’s new vlog series created to offer a more visual and personal account of our history saving journeys. From the beginning, we wanted HistoryIT to be an…

How to Plan and Celebrate Your Organization’s Milestones

We’re used to celebrating personal milestones like birthdays, anniversaries and graduations, but we often neglect to identify and plan appropriately when it comes to significant business and organizational milestones. When…

Hidden History: Mystery Photos

This blog post is part of a series exploring the surprising places that we discover history. We often think of museums, historical societies, and libraries as the sole repositories of…

Hidden History: Hog Island

This blog post is part of our Hidden History series, which explores the surprising places that we discover history. We often think of museums, historical societies, and libraries as the…

Negro Leagues History Now Officially Part of MLB History

On December 16, 2020 Major League Baseball (MLB) made an announcement that will literally change historical records: it is reclassifying the Negro Leagues as equal to the major leagues.

What’s the rush? Why build a robust digital archive now?

On any given week, I talk with 20-25 organizations or institutions about their efforts to build digital archives. Projects to preserve history and make it accessible in a meaningful way…

Think twice before asking Santa for a scanner this year

Thinking of asking Santa to bring you a scanner this year? We know you’re finally ready to organize that giant box of family photos or your organization’s dusty archive materials,…

Hidden History: Tiffany Windows in Fraternity Memorial Headquarters

This blog is part of a series exploring the surprising places that we discover history. We often think of museums, historical societies, and libraries as the sole repositories of our…

The 3 Fs Endangering Your History: Forgetting

This is the third in a three-part series focused on the most severe dangers to history (what HistoryIT calls the 3Fs – Fire, Flood, and Forgetting). Fire and flood, whether…

The 3 Fs Endangering Your History: Flood

This is the second in a three-part series focused on the most severe dangers to history (what HistoryIT calls the 3Fs – Fire, Flood, and Forgetting). Floods have caused trouble…

The Future of History is More Relevant Than Ever

Six years ago, in October 2014, I was focused on preparing for my first-ever TEDx talk. Titled “The Future of History,” my talk focused on what I like to call…

The 3 Fs Endangering Your History: Fire

History is always in danger. By history, I mean the historical assets that we use as evidence and examples to share stories from the past. These assets are often in…

How to develop a sense of belonging when you can’t be together?

Looking to the past is more critical than ever as you build your organization’s future. With no end in sight for the pandemic, organizations that rely heavily on recruitment must…

How to talk about a shameful history

Individuals and organizations all have things from their past that they wish hadn’t happened or had been handled differently.  This can be as minor as that eighth-grade haircut or as…

Alpha Chi Omega Partners with HistoryIT

Digitally preserving 134+ years of history Indianapolis, October 25, 2019 — Alpha Chi Omega Fraternity today debuted the first phase of a project to digitally preserve and share its vibrant history,…

History Shows Attack on Greek Life Nothing New

With Harvard and other leading universities seeking to ban or effectively eliminate single-gender organizations by sanctioning their members, sororities and fraternities are under attack. It’s not the first time.

Kappa Kappa Gamma Partners with HistoryIT

Becoming first Greek-letter organization to commit to transforming its vast archives into a 21st-century digital collection Columbus, OH, November 10, 2017 – Kappa Kappa Gamma Fraternity and its Foundation today announced it…

National Fraternity Partners with HistoryIT to Build Digital Legacy

Sigma Alpha Epsilon begins bold initiative to share their entire archive online Evanston, IL, May 24, 2017 – Sigma Alpha Epsilon has launched the first phase of an ambitious project to ensure…

Digital Scrapbook Shines New Spotlight on the Great Bambino

HistoryIT releases a new digital exhibit that showcases Babe Ruth as a vaudeville performer Portland, Maine, September 15, 2016 – In partnership with the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum,…

HistoryIT Partners with Leading Map Library to Launch Cutting-Edge Digital Collection

HistoryIT and the Osher Map Library lead way in making digital map collections accessible to a broad audience Portland, ME, April 10, 2017 – Digital history company HistoryIT and the Osher Map…

Her Hat Was In the Ring!

New website created and hosted by HistoryIT features thousands of American women who ran for office before they had the right to vote nationally in 1920 Portland, Maine, August 1,…

Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum Goes Digital

HistoryIT partners with the museum to launch digital collection containing Babe Ruth’s scrapbooks and more to be added HistoryIT helps National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum make baseball treasures…

Salt Story Archive Launches

An extensive digital collection of Maine stories is now available to the public. Extensive digital collection of Maine stories launches Salt Story Archive the result of partnership between renowned documentary studies…

Sharing the Legacy of Mayor Hudnut

I first got to know the magnetic William Hudnut, III not through that twinkle in the eye, the baritone voice, or the signature “Hudnut Hook.” Instead, I got to know…

A Woman for President: 144 Years and Counting

Candidate Hillary Clinton stands on the shoulders of thousands of women who have run for political office since the nineteenth century. Newspaper publisher Victoria Woodhull ran for president of the…

Walter Johnson, Manager of the Cleveland Indians

As most baseball fans know, the Cleveland Indians are battling right now for their first World Series title since 1948. That 1948 team was stacked with future Hall of Famers:…

Honus Wagner and Hillerich Baseball Bats

Pittsburgh Pirates’ great Honus Wagner was known for his bat.  Not just figuratively–he led the National League in batting eight times and finished with a .328 career batting average–but for…

Walter Johnson and his Fox Hounds

Even on its surface, it’s a compelling photograph. The inscription dates the image to 1926, but even without it, one could guess the era: the sepia finish, the rugged faces,…

Jackie Robinson Scrapbook may include the most famous photograph ever taken at a minor league game

The Jackie Robinson Scrapbook, recently digitized by the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum and HistoryIT, is a collection of photographs, newspaper clippings, and even baseball cards compiled by…

The Digital Scrapbooks of Baseball

Baseballs, uniforms, gloves and bats—these are the types of artifacts that come to mind when thinking of the National Baseball Hall of Fame. But there’s another fascinating type of artifact…

Digital Imperative for Historical Collections

I read the April 2nd Washington Post article about the discovery of the missing patent documents for the Wright brothers’ “flying machine” with mixed emotions. As an historian, I am…

Analog Practices in a Digital World

Our historical information is stuck in the past. For the most part, cultural heritage organizations are failing to connect the modern online population with our historical resources. I believe that…

The Future of History: My TEDx Talk

At HistoryIT, we build, support, and enhance digital archives. We are committed to developing creative approaches, through which archives become powerful, engaging tools, accessible and meaningful to diverse audiences beyond…

“Who?” is the question. “Everyone!” is the answer.

Powerful digital archives reach and influence new audiences and are the key to needed funding The way we access information has fundamentally changed and this change demands a re-calibration on…

Kill the Finding Aid! Give the Public the Ability to Really Search our History

At HistoryIT we believe that the information in archives is of great interest to broad groups of the public, not just professional researchers. Yes, scholars know how to navigate archives…

Why is digitization so expensive?

At HistoryIT, we meet with a wide variety of organizations and institutions that are charged, either as their core mission or as one division of their entity, with caring for…

Let’s talk about the future of history

People have been asking me to blog for a couple of years now. Like many of us, I’ve found the concept both intriguing and daunting. Yes, I have a lot…