The PACSCL Finding Aid Site is live!  You can search across repositories, you can search by keyword, or you can browse using facets.  And the best part is … it is only going to become a better and richer resource as more repositories and more collections are added!

Right now, the  site includes ten repositories–and largely, only the collections that have been processed via the PACSCL/CLIR project.  However, each repository has the mechanism in place to add collections that are already processed or will be processed in the future.  Half of the repositories have already added additional finding aids.  The collections available for searching provide a glimpse into just a few of the amazing primary sources available in the Philadelphia area.  Topics that are best represented are medicine, religion, science and women’s history; although other strengths include business and commerce, education, family histories and genealogy, history of Philadelphia cultural institutions, maritime history, military history, and the arts.  Each and every collection is incredible … the research potential is huge and now students, scholars, enthusiasts, and genealogists can get started, using the collection guides to discover new facets of our known history.

The creation of this site actually started before the PACSCL/CLIR “Hidden Collections” Processing Project began.  The University of Pennsylvania created their site on which the PACSCL Finding Aids site is modeled.  The PACSCL Finding Aid site would not be possible without the hard work of UPenn folk Delphine Khanna, Patty Lynn, David McKnight, Rachelle Nelson, Leslie Vallhonrat and IT staff, as well as UPenn archivists Maureen Callahan, formerly of the Penn Museum Archives; Michelle Chesner, formerly of the Katz  Center for Advanced Judaic Studies, Nancy Shawcross of the Rare Book and Manuscript Library; and Jordon Steele, of the Biddle Law Library.  After their site was live, the PACSCL group began tweaking the site to suit 23 (and hopefully more) repositories.  Thanks to David Conners, formerly of  Haverford College, Margaret Graham of Drexel University College of Medicine Legacy Center, Eric Pumroy of Bryn Mawr College, Nancy Shawcross of UPenn Rare Book and Manuscript Library, and Rob Sieczkiewicz of Drexel University Archives and Special Collections who volunteered their insights, time and energy to making the site work for the unique PACSCL group.

Thanks also to our Project Team who created the finding aids for many of these collections: Courtney Smerz, Project Archivist, whose work is essential to the success of the project; student processors Megan Atkinson, Megan Good, Becky Koch, Leslie O’Neill, Laurie Rizzo, Eric Rosenzweig, and Forrest Wright, whose energy and dedication have contributed greatly to this accomplishment; and Archivist’s Toolkit cataloger Garrett Boos, whose efforts have resulted in legacy finding aids available for research.

Visit the site and start your research … I am so excited to learn more about these collections from the researchers who will use them.