10 June 2009

Footnote.com: At your library

Footnote.com will soon be accessible at libraries - perhaps one near you.

A new arrangement with Ebsco Publishing - as exclusive worldwide distributor of the site - will now make the site available to subscribing libraries which will be able to provide remote access to patrons who want to research their family genealogy or explore the online images of the original documents.

The subscription site features more than 55 million digital images (including photographs, documents, and other information) of historical documents available from a content partnership with The National Archives and other regional archives. Most of these resources were never available to Internet users.

It offers material relating to the Revolutionary War, Civil War, World War I, World War II, US Presidents, historical newspapers and naturalization documents.

Ebsco vice president of archive, literature and proprietary products Michael Laddin, said in this press release, “Working with Footnote lets us provide our customers access to a leading historical and genealogical database. Footnote has an unprecedented, vast array of valuable and unique content of interest to historians and genealogists alike.”

A recent Library Journal review gave it a "cutting-edge" rating:

This social networking site brings together over 40 million original historical documents and continues to grow by "millions each month." Through a unique partnership with the National Archives, it recently added "the first ever" interactive World War II collection, which includes an interactive version of the USS Arizona Memorial, World War II Hero Pages, and World War II photos. Other material includes the Matthew Brady collection of Civil War photos and UFO documents from 1947–69. With an appeal reminiscent of the History Channel, this smartly designed resource lets you create a gallery of photos, family trees, and much more. Cutting-edge in every way.
Ebsco Publishing offers nearly 300 full-text and secondary research databases for many researchers.

3 comments:

  1. I have already contacted the Palm Beach County library system to ask if it will be putting footnote.com in its "genealogy resource on-line" section. I would recommend that all of us contact our public library systems and encourage them to sign up for this program. Jacqueline Fineblit

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  2. A great idea! All readers should do that, as it will certainly show that patrons are interested in this great resource. Thanks, Jacqueline, for commenting.

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  3. This is such exciting news. Thank you for blogging about it so more people will know. I agree with Jacqueline about people contacting their local libraries to express interest. My library offers Heritage Quest with at-home access. I hope they will offer the same access to Footnote. Thanks, again.

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