Archive Digitization Transcribe-A-Thon – Postponed

Due to growing concerns regarding COVID-19, this program has been postponed.

Help transcribe documents in the Museum’s first Transcribe-A-Thon!

More than 50,000 pages of Sandy Spring’s historic documents have been digitized and that number continues to grow each day. We need an army of volunteers to make the content of each page searchable and findable.  You can help by being part of a Transcribe-a-Thon.

Transcription is the process of converting handwritten documents into something recognizable by a computer; a transcriber reads the original document and recreates it by typing exactly what they see. It can be a fascinating (and addictive!) process that allows direct access to the thoughts and experiences of those living in a time we typically only read about second-hand.

The Transcribe-A-Thon will gather a group of history-loving folks for the thrill of meeting some historic characters in our community through their very own words. With cursive writing no longer widely taught, this is a tremendous cross-generational opportunity for young and old to team up, each bringing their own unique abilities to this fun event (one person can read the document, and the other can type).

In order to participate, we ask you to please bring your own internet-accessible digital device, preferably a laptop but a tablet can also work.

Please pre-register so we know how many transcribers to expect. You can also transcribe from home by following these instructions.