Blog Archives
Williamson County Public Library’s Special Collections Department is a 2023 SLAM! Idea Showcase Winner
The National Genealogical Society (NGS) announced their 2023 SLAM! Idea Showcase results on May 26, 2023. Their event highlights creative or innovative projects and programs by societies, libraries, archives, museums, and other organizations. We are excited to announce that the Special Collections Department at the Main Library in Franklin’s submission was selected as one of the NGS’s two winners!
View the winning submissions:
2023 Winners
- Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania – “Street Genealogy: Finding Families in a Philly Parking Space”
- Williamson County Public Library Special Collections Department – “The Hatcher Family: Roots from Owen Hill Road”
And honorable mentions:
2023 Honorable Mentions
- Wake County Genealogical Society – “Digitizing the Wake Cemetery Survey c. 1978 Files”
- NC Historical Records Online – “NC Land Grants Website”
And other participants:
2023 Participants
- Currituck County Library – “The EPICC (Enslaved People in Currituck County) Project”
- North Carolina Genealogical Society – “Indexing Partnership Between the North Carolina Genealogical Society and the North Carolina Collection”
- Spartanburg County Public Libraries – “Spartanburg County Public Libraries and the Fabric of the Past Workshop”
- Georgia Genealogical Society – “Finding Your Georgia Ancestors”
- Guild of One-Name Studies – “Elephants”
- Guild of One-Name Studies – “Young at Heart”
- FamilySearch – “Guided Research on the FamilySearch Research Wiki”
- Durham-Orange Genealogical Society – “Running Interactive Society Meetings in the Internet Age”
- Colorado Council of Genealogical Societies – “Colorado Council of Genealogical Societies Benefits”
- Genealogical Society of Kendall County Texas – “May Fest 2022”
As one of the two winners, the Special Collections Departments is receiving a $250 prize. The Williamson County Public Library extends it’s gratitude to the NGS, their 2023 SLAM! Idea Showcase Committee, and the award sponsors Ancestry, Family Tree Maker, and VIVID-PIX for helping make this award possible and their recognition of the Special Collections Department’s project.
Read more about the award here.
Williamson Herald article here.
WCPLtn: Discover Learn Succeed
The Williamson County Public Library is located in downtown Franklin at 1314 Columbia Avenue. The Special Collections Department is located on the second floor.
All library programs are free and open to the public. Learn more about this event or other library programs and services by calling 615-595-1243, extension 1, or by visiting the library’s website at http://wcpltn.org. The library e-newsletter provides library news about programs like this and more. Sign up to receive it via email.
Tennessee Electronic Library NEWS
Tennessee Electronic Library provides access to Newspapers.com Southeast Edition.
Rick Warwick presents Lemuel Parker, Bingham Photographer
Rick Warwick presents Lemuel Parker, Bingham Photographer
July 20, 6 – 7:30 PM @ Meeting Room. Please register.
Lemuel Parker’s beautiful photographs depict scenes of rural life in the Williamson County communities of Bingham and Leiper’s Fork during the 1910s. These photos might have been lost forever, but luckily, the glass plate negatives found their way to Rick Warwick. Rick was able to develop them, identify the people in the photographs, and discover the story they told. Please join us on Wednesday, July 20, and enjoy Rick’s presentation of Lemuel Parker and his photographs.
His newest book, Lemuel Parker, Bingham Photographer, will be on sale for $20 a copy, cash or check.
The program will begin at 6:00 p.m. with book sales and autographs afterward. This event is free and open to the public. Registration is not required, but as a courtesy, we would appreciate knowing you’re coming.
Local Author Hosting Book Launch at WCPL-Main
History is not just interesting, it’s important! We hope you’ll come out and hear local historian and author, Paul Clements, speak about his newest book on Monday, June 27, at 6 p.m.
Follow the link for more information about the book.
Local author Paul Clements will host a book launch and discussion for his latest publication, Tell Them We Were Rising, at the Williamson County Public Library in Franklin Monday from 6-7:30 p.m.
The book is a collection of 23 stories about “individuals of color through slavery and Jim Crow, in Nashville and beyond.”
Clements has been studying history and writing about history for almost 50 years. His first book, a two-volume study of the architecture and history of antebellum homes in Davidson County called “A Past Remembered,” came out in 1987. Then, he got interested in the stories people had to tell — the living history of Middle Tennessee.
November is Native American Heritage Month
President Reagan proclaimed the week of November 23-30, 1986 as “American Indian Week.” Every President since 1995 has issued an annual proclamation designating November as a time to celebrate the cultures, accomplishments, and contributions of Indigenous Americans and Alaska Natives. The Friday after Thanksgiving each year is Native American Heritage Day, which falls on November 26 this year.
The Federal Register recognizes 573 separate tribal entities living in the United States today. The more populous tribes include Cherokee (729,000+), Navajo (298,000+), and Choctaw (158,000+), with the Ute (10,000+), Yakama (10,000+), and Cree (7,700+).
There were approximately 7 tribes in colonial Tennessee: the Muscogee (Creek), Yuchi, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Cherokee, Shawnee, and Seneca. In fact, the name Tennessee derives from that of the Cherokee village Tanasi. To learn more about Indigenous culture in Tennessee, you can visit the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians at https://ebci.com/ or the Native American Indian Association of Tennessee at https://naiatn.org/. You can also read more stories by Indigenous authors and about Native American history by checking out one of these books at the library!
Carry by Toni Jensen
Prudence by David Treuer
There There by Tommy Orange
Code Talker by Joseph Bruchac
Ceremony by Leslie Marmon Silko
Imaginary Borders by Xiuhtezcatl Martinez
Access to Ancestry Library Edition Extended
Access to Ancestry Library Edition has again been temporarily extended to library cardholders working remotely, courtesy of ProQuest and its partner Ancestry.
Remote access will be available until September 30, 2021.
Access will continue to be re-evaluated.
Enjoying our subscription to Ancestry Library edition is as easy as 1-2-3 with your Library card!
- Go to the Library website: http://wcpltn.org
- Log in to “My Account” with your Library card number and PIN. (Your PIN is the last 4 digits of your library card number.)
- Click on ”Ancestry” in the top menu bar, third option across the top. Start searching in Ancestry.com!
National Library Week: April 2 – 10
This week, Williamson County Public Library encourages all community members to visit our website to explore and access virtual services and programs. WCPL offers a wide array of online resources that are available from the comfort of home, including Overdrive, the Overdrive app- Libby, and Hoopla.
April 4-10, 2021 is National Library Week, a time to highlight the essential role libraries, librarians, and library workers play in transforming lives and strengthening communities. The theme for this year’s National Library Week is “Welcome to your library,” which promotes the idea that libraries extend far beyond the four walls of a building and that everyone is welcome to use their services. Whether people visit virtually or in person, libraries are accessible and inclusive places that foster a sense of belonging and community through learning, discovery and exploration.
During these challenging times, libraries of all types have been going above and beyond to adapt to our changing world by expanding their resources and continuing to meet the needs of their patrons. Libraries across the country are making a difference in people’s lives by providing electronic learning resources like online homework help and wi-fi access for students and workers who may lack internet access at home. WCPL is supporting the community with virtual services such as book clubs, gardening programs, meditation programs, crafting tutorials, etc.
This National Library Week, the public can show their appreciation and support for libraries by visiting their library’s website, following them on social media and using the hashtag #NationalLibraryWeek.
First sponsored in 1958, National Library Week is a national observance sponsored by the American Library Association and libraries of all types across the country each April.
For more information, visit wcpltn.org.
Press Release courtesy of The American Library Association
Library Closed Today Due to Inclement Weather
Due to possible icy road conditions, WCPL will be closed today, Sunday, February 14, 2021.
Our online resources are available 24/7 at wcpltn.org. Visit the Reader’s Corner for online Research and Homework help and eLibrary book options.
Enjoy WCPL Special Collection’s access Digital Resources, including an Ancestry Library Edition that you can access by logging into your library account, with your library card number and looking for the ANCESTRY in the upper left corner of the page:
Please visit the Williamson County Office of Public Safety for a list of road closures – the list is NOT inclusive. This list is just indicating which roads are currently identified by First Responders.
Stay warm, stay safe, and HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY!
Observance of African-American History Month at WCPL
The celebration of African-American History is observed during the month of February – the observance is an acknowledgement of the central role of Black Americans in the story of the United States. African-American history is indelibly American history, it belongs, good and bad, to all of us. February is the time we give to affirm our fellow Americans and recognize the sacrifices made on behalf of our shared country. Segregation and negation of a specific group of fellow Americans, either by voice, action, or silence is not tolerable, in any situation.
Every year, in February, our Special Collections department highlights a local, pioneer, African-American family. By definition, a pioneer family is one that can document it’s history in Williamson County prior to 1850. In actuality, most all of the black pioneer residents were enslaved. As such, their history is entwined with the history of their white owners. There can be no disputing that American – Williamson County – pioneering families share a common history; it is the same history, from different perspectives. Endeavoring “to walk in one another’s shoes” is our shared human bond.
The pioneer family exhibition featured this February in our Special Collections area is that of Wiley and Jane Brown Scruggs, presented by the African American Heritage Society of Williamson County. The Scruggs’ story is documented by Tina Jones with a display of exhibition panels that details genealogical research and local history. Beginning in the days of slavery, Wiley and Jane, lived on a farm that was located where the Westhaven development is now. This exhibit describes their lives as they move through slavery to freedom to migration, including documented evidence.
Please visit the Special Collections web page to look at the Wiley and Jane Scruggs link detailing the immediate family history. There is a second link providing a more general look at the Scruggs family, including the white slave-holding family.
Wiley and Jane Brown Scruggs Family
Also, all of this local history is available for viewing, in-person. The exhibit is in Special Collections department, on the second floor of the library.
Dori Duff
Reference
🔎Remote access to Library Edition of Ancestry available through the end of the year!
Remote access to Ancestry Library Edition is now available through the end of the year!
The instructions to access it are below:
Your Account is all 14 digits of your library card number (no spaces)
Your PIN should be the last 4 digits of the library card number
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