Many local congregations in Massachusetts have access to a source of funding for historical preservation, made possible through the Community Preservation Act. Some are already tapping these to cover the costs of preservation and digitization of their records.
The Library also has funding available for digitizing records, and we are actively encouraging local churches with records pre-dating 1800 to contact us. Our mission is to preserve these very important documents of the past, and to make them fully accessible to researchers.
Here is a map and a list of Massachusetts towns that have CPA funds available.
These two articles will show you how to access CPA for historical documents, and to use this public money for private owned assets like church records:
Documents are Historic Resources, Too (April 2009)
Can CPA Fund Private Projects? (January 2008)
Do you have old records sitting in a closet or under the stairs? Please contact us here and we can discuss other options. If you don't have access to CPA funding, contact us. We are here to help!
-Peggy
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