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Save Americas Treasures
AAMP AWARDED “SAVE AMERICA’S TREASURES” GRANT
The African American Museum in Philadelphia (AAMP) has been awarded a $150,000 grant from Save America’s Treasures to preserve its extensive photographic and film-based collections. Save America’s Treasures received 402 applications and from these applications, 41 grants were awarded to projects that addressed the most urgent preservation needs and were deemed most significant to the nation. According to First Lady Michelle Obama, Honorary Chairman of the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities, “Save America's Treasures invests in our nation's irreplaceable legacy of buildings, documents, collections and artistic works. These awards empower communities all over the country to rescue and restore this priceless heritage and ensure that future generations continue to learn from the voices, ideas, events and people represented by these projects.”
AAMP owns significant sound and photographic holdings including the complete archives of Jack T. Franklin, Pearl Bailey’s personal photographs and recordings, and Negro League photographs from the Cash/Thompson Collection. These images represent several hundred in a collection estimated to be several hundred thousand. To date, AAMP’s sound and photographic collections have been largely inaccessible to the public.
The Save America’s Treasures funds will enable better preservation of these collections, improved collections management software, and increased public access. At this project's end, some of the most highly requested images will be available to the public. Greater access will also promote cooperation and collaboration with other museums, scholars, and researchers.
The initiatives funded by the Save America’s Treasures grant are just the beginning of an anticipated larger digitization program. In the next seven years, AAMP’s goal is to catalogue and digitize the collection to preserve its valuable information and maximize public accessibility.
The African American Museum in Philadelphia (AAMP) has been awarded a $150,000 grant from Save America’s Treasures to preserve its extensive photographic and film-based collections. Save America’s Treasures received 402 applications and from these applications, 41 grants were awarded to projects that addressed the most urgent preservation needs and were deemed most significant to the nation. According to First Lady Michelle Obama, Honorary Chairman of the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities, “Save America's Treasures invests in our nation's irreplaceable legacy of buildings, documents, collections and artistic works. These awards empower communities all over the country to rescue and restore this priceless heritage and ensure that future generations continue to learn from the voices, ideas, events and people represented by these projects.”
AAMP owns significant sound and photographic holdings including the complete archives of Jack T. Franklin, Pearl Bailey’s personal photographs and recordings, and Negro League photographs from the Cash/Thompson Collection. These images represent several hundred in a collection estimated to be several hundred thousand. To date, AAMP’s sound and photographic collections have been largely inaccessible to the public.
The Save America’s Treasures funds will enable better preservation of these collections, improved collections management software, and increased public access. At this project's end, some of the most highly requested images will be available to the public. Greater access will also promote cooperation and collaboration with other museums, scholars, and researchers.
The initiatives funded by the Save America’s Treasures grant are just the beginning of an anticipated larger digitization program. In the next seven years, AAMP’s goal is to catalogue and digitize the collection to preserve its valuable information and maximize public accessibility.
