SCHOAM! for June 2026

Special Collections, Historical Organizations, Archives & Museums

in short: News | Grants | Ideas | Events | Webinars | Jobs

News from SCRLC

Welcome, New Members!

We're glad to welcome aboard the Southeast Steuben County Library (SSCL) in Corning, Guernsey Memorial Library in Norwich, and the Howland Stone Store Museum (HSSM) in Aurora as Affiliate Members of SCRLC. Look forward to seeing some terrific digital collections from them in the near future! SSCL and Guernsey both have great local history collections. HSSM already had representation on New York Heritage thanks to Wells College and Seymour Public Library, and now they will be able to expand their offerings.

New Collection: Gertrude Conant Collection

Over 500 identified photos of Caroline residents thanks to the late Gertrude Conant and the members of the Caroline History Association!

New Collection: Case Research Laboratory Notebooks

Spanning the years 1915 to 1930, these notebooks document the activities of the Case Research Laboratory, where the first commercially successful sound-on-film system was invented - in Auburn! This collection from the Cayuga Museum of History and Art was made possible with an SCRLC Digitization grant.

New Collection: SUNY Broome Photobooks

These bound photo albums were printed between 1958 and 1979 and include photographs of campus facilities while under construction and after being finished. SUNY Broome had already digitized their archives for their own LibGuides site and added the materials to NYH for extra visibility and discoverability.

Grants & Assistance

GHHN Conservation Grants

Support of up to $10,000 is available for conservation treatment of paintings, works on paper (including individual drawings, watercolors, prints, or photographs), textiles (including costumes, domestic textiles, and upholstery), furniture, frames, sculpture, historical, ethnographic, and decorative objects by professional conservators. Due Sept. 1.

Icon/Tru Conservation & Exhibition Grant

£3,000 (~$4,000 USD) to be used toward conservation and housing/framing costs, along with a material donation of Optium Museum Acrylic or UltraVue Laminated Glass valued at up to approximately £4,000 (~$5,400 USD) for small organizations with fewer than 100,000 annual visitors. While the program is based in the UK, it does fund US-based projects. Due July 13.

ICYMI: DHPSNY Grants

Apply for free professional help from Documentary Heritage & Preservation Services for New York, an organization that is funded by NYSL's Documentary Heritage Program. They'll award grants toward Foundational Planning Assistance, Strategic Planning Assistance, Archival Needs Assessments, Preservation Surveys, and Condition Surveys. Apply by July 10.

Ideas & Inspiration

Civics4Action Civics in a Nutshell Guide

G. Peter Lederer, Ed.D., Founder and President of Civics4Action, a bipartisan nonprofit group established to spread civics education, has just published Civics in a Nutshell Guide. This guide is intended for community organizations like museums and libraries to use in civics-focused discussion groups and programs. Give it a look! It includes discussion prompts that are perfect for your America250 programs.

New York at 250 Resource Guide

Last month, the New York State Education Department's Office of Cultural Education (which includes the NYS Library, Archives, and Museum) released a resource guide for the America250 commemoration. The first section of the PDF is mostly a list of reading suggestions and discussion questions; the second section includes program ideas based on America250 themes, including those from other real NYS organizations; and the third has a few pages about logos and style. You can also email the NYS Museum to get the high-res digital files for pop-up panels about Revolutionary New York, but you would have to pay for printing or other production yourself.

Traveling Exhibits through NYS Parks

The NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation created a set of traveling exhibit banners called Enslavement to Freedom: 1627-1827-2027 that organizations can borrow for display. Read more about the exhibits and Black history anniversaries here.

RightHear for Museums

The Susan B. Anthony House and Museum in Rochester was just featured by WSKG for being the first to adopt RightHear, a software for people who are blind or have low vision. The company places markers throughout the building, and the phone application detects them from as far as 50 feet away. These markers cue the app to provide audio instructions to the person who is blind or has a visual impairment, like directions to the restroom or elevators, and they can include historical information for the exhibit.

Microfilm Historical Exhibit

Thanks to Ashley Beavers of CLRC for sharing this online exhibit that tells the story of microfilm. It's very well done and interesting!

Happening in the Neighborhood

Delaware

• Hanford Mills Museum is hosting a Gravestone Cleaning Workshop on June 18. HMM has a great slate of activities planned for July 4th, too, including a giveaway of ice cream made with the power of their mill!
• Delaware County Historical Association will host their annual Civil War Event, Clash in the Catskills, over the weekend of June 27 and 28. They're planning a Revolutionary War guided driving tour for July, as well as a member potluck on July 25.

Otsego

• A Cooperstown Graduate Program student, Peyton Legg, worked with SUNY Oneonta's AJ Sanders to create an interactive display about student success over the history of the university. Turn Back the Clock includes an archival scavenger hunt and "Dragon Discussions."
• The Greater Oneonta Historical Society has put tons of work into their Hometown Heroes banners again. GOHS is again doing a bunch of walking tours while the weather cooperates. They're planning an August fundraiser called Hops for History, and there are four new historical markers to be unveiled in the new few months. GOHS director Marcela Micucci will be hosting an America250 trivia night at the Black Oak Tavern on Thursday, July 2 at 6 pm. On Saturday, July 5, GOHS is celebrating the 250th with a recreation of the Redpath Chautauqua event from 1914 in the Huntington Park, with more trivia, historic games, face painting, balloon animals, and lots of fun.
• The Swart-Wilcox House Museum celebrate the installation of the Lawrence Swart plaque by the Oneonta chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) on Friday, July 3 at 3 pm, with tours, music, and an exhibit about their Barn Project. At 5:30, two regional teams will play vintage baseball!

Chenango

• Chenango County Historical Society will participate in the Path through History weekend, June 20, with a program from the Alzheimer's Association, an exhibit unveiling, and the presentation of the Elinor Robb Troicke Memorial Scholarship. CCHS is now participating in the OurStoryBridge project and has a collection of oral histories to browse and explore here.

Broome

• The George F. Johnson Memorial Library in Endicott will celebrate the grand opening of their new teen room on June 17. They promise to have a comically large ribbon. GFJ is hosting a Memory Lab Digitization Day on June 29 and two By the People: Volunteer Transcription workshops, one online and one in-person. These workshops will show attendees how to participate in the Library of Congress's transcription projects. As part of their America250 celebrations, GFJ is showing Hamilton and hosting a history trivia event on July 7.

Cortland

• Cortland County Historical Society is extra busy, with new exhibits for the summer and some excellent events. On June 17, Jake Haiwhagai'i Edwards of the Onondaga Eel Clan will present The Divided Ground: Indigenous Sovereignty and the Agony of the American Revolution. On June 30, George Cummings will explore the Life of a Soldier in George Washington's Continental Army. On July 1, Perry Ground of the Onondaga Turtle Clan will present Haudenosaunee Influence on American Democracy.

Tompkins

• The History Center in Tompkins County is reigniting their COVID-era fundraiser, Traverse Tompkins, in collaboration with Sciencenter and the Museum of the Earth (all amazing places to visit if you haven't yet been!). The 2026 fundraiser is called "Move for Museums" and is a friendly contest: over the weekend of June 27-28, the three museums will compete for community involvement.


Tioga

• The Spencer Historical Society has opened for the season with an exhibit featuring their local artists.

Cayuga

• Howland Stone Store Museum is hosting a lecture on the Leffingwell family and its connection to Clara Barton on June 14 at 4 pm at Opendore.
• The Cayuga Museum, the Seward House Museum, and the National Park Service are offering summer camp opportunities again this year. There's Hands-on History camp for the 8-10 crowd and C.A.S.E. Camp for 12-14 year olds.
• The Aurora Ledyard Historical Society has unveiled a new exhibit, Our Home: How We Saw It in the Patrick Tavern at the corner of Main Street and Dublin Hill Road.
• The Seward House Museum will offer free tours on June 19 in honor of Juneteenth. On June 30, visit SHM for a free lunchtime lecture about Senator William Seward's 1858 "Irrepressible Conflict" speech. Check out SHM's latest funny video to learn about their plans for tomorrow, which include a reenactment and lecture about Charlotte Cushman, all in honor of Pride.
• On June 18, visit Seymour Library in Auburn for a lecture called "Why Wasn’t Western New York a State (or Possibly A Province of Canada)?" with local historian and author, Christopher Carosa (who was recently at Seneca Falls Historical Society to give a lecture about the great roads).

Seneca

• Interlaken Public Library will hold its twice-monthly online meetup for genealogists on June 25.
• Seneca Falls Library is hosting Waterway of Change: Women and the Erie Canal on Saturday, June 27 at 1 pm.
• Waterloo Library and Historical Society is hosting a special behind-the-scenes tour of the Memorial Day Museum for tweens and teens on July 21, and a lecture (for all ages) on August 3 called From Home and Beyond: The Women Who Shaped Our Nation.
• Seneca Falls Historical Society is seeking volunteers for Canal Fest on July 4. They're planning an Attic Treasures Yard Sale for July 25.

Schuyler

• Tomorrow, June 13, will be Schuyler County Historical Society's Walkin’ History! Watkins Glen tour with Dr. Gary Emerson. They have more tours planned throughout the summer, all over the county. Director Heather O'Grady continues to post renovation and construction updates, including the new elevator!
• The International Motor Racing Research Center has published a presentation on their YouTube channel about the history of racing at Watkins Glen after the circuit was closed down.

Yates

• Yates County History Center is looking for business sponsors for their annual golf tournament fundraiser. They had a fantastic turnout for their recent pancake breakfast fundraiser.

Chemung

• Chemung County Historical Society is hosting an emergency preparedness course next week, June 20. The Great Car Thing fundraiser is tomorrow, June 13. And through July 4, visit CCHS for free! Admission is waived.
• The Chemung County Library District has some special virtual programs coming up: European Experiences of 19th and 20th Century Voyages to America on July 14 and Looking for my Babies: Freedmen Searching For Family with Ari Wilkins on August 11. The Van Etten library is planning a community time capsule.

Steuben

• Corning Museum of Glass has unveiled a new virtual game that visitors can play in the Innovation Center: Color in Glass. Remember, if you haven't looked at it lately, CMOG's Rakow Library has its own beautiful digital collections website.
• SUNY Corning has created a LibGuide page for the America250 commemoration, featuring some of the really amazing objects from their archives.
• Southeast Steuben County Library is also preparing a Community Time Capsule!
• The Steuben County Historical Society shared a video they took from June 11 that shows a remarkably large crowd of people who showed up to watch a special steam engine train roll by.

Allegany

• Alfred University's Mechele Romanchock recently posted about the access that Alfred alumni still have to library resources, which is a great idea to do every year.
• In Allegany County, nominate someone great for the Lee Gridley Volunteer Award from the Allegany County Historical Society.

Zooms & Webinars Up Your Alley

[METRO] Annual Meeting: On Radical Infrastructures

Tuesday, June 16 at 10:30 am

[DHPSNY] Introduction to Risk Assessment for Cultural Collections

Tuesday, June 16 at 12 pm

[Trust Archives Initiative] Assessing Authenticity — Due Diligence in the Age of AI

Tuesday, June 16 at 12 pm

[CCAHA] Handling Photographs for Digitization

Tuesday, June 16 at 12 pm

[NYSL] The Home Front: Revolutionary Households, Military Occupation, and the Making of American Independence

Wednesday, June 17 at 12 pm

[NYS Archives] Managing Case Files

Thursday, June 18 at 10 am

[CLRC] Freedom 2027 - Preparing for New York's Abolition Bicentennial

Thursday, June 18 at 2 pm

[SCRLC/LibraryWorks] Empowering Communities through News Literacy

Thursday, June 18 at 2 pm

[DPOE-N] Getting Started with Advocacy for Digital Preservation

Monday, June 22 and Tuesday, June 23 from 12 to 2 pm

[Trust Archives Initiative] Content Licensing — Navigating Rights in the Age of AI

Tuesday, June 23 at 12 pm

[Backstage] It's Under Control: Managing Name and Subject Headings in Your Catalog

Tuesday, June 23 at 1 pm

[Tech Talk] Scrub Your Name from the Web: How to Reduce Your Digital Footprint

Tuesday, June 23 at 2 pm

[Niche] Efficiency by Design: Stories of Process Management in Libraries and Archives

Wednesday, June 24 at 11 am

[NYSL] Scattered and Fugitive Things: How Black Collectors Created Archives and Remade History, Author talk with Laura E. Helton

Wednesday, June 24 at 12 pm

[METRO] Introduction to VOSviewer: Exploring a Free Tool for Visualization of Bibliometric Data

Wednesday, June 24 at 12 pm

[NYSL] Path to Belonging: Social Media and Marketing

Tuesday, June 30 at 10 am

[Trust Archives Initiative] Strategic Engagement with Technology Companies

Wednesday, July 8 at 12 pm

[NYSL] Blindness, Low Vision & Our Libraries: How to Better Serve Your Patrons with Visual Impairments

Friday, July 10 at 11 am

[NYSL] NY250: Tapestry of New York

Tuesday, July 14 at 10 am

[Choice] When AI Comes Knocking: A Decision Framework for Archival Collections

Tuesday, July 14 at 11 am

[Trust Archives Initiative] Taxonomies for AI-Generated and Altered Media

Tuesday, July 14 at 12 pm

[Backlog] Archival Value

Monday, July 20 at 6 pm

In-Person Events & Save-the-Dates

• Archiving2026
  July 20-23 | Boston, MA
• DHPSNY Practical Digitization: Planning, Handling, Imaging Workshop
  Aug. 11 | Painted Post, NY
  Aug. 13 | Greece, NY
• APHNYS 
  Sept. 28-30 | Utica, NY
• NYS Digital Equity Network Annual Conference
  Sept. 29 | Albany
• GHHN Annual Conference adnm 
  Oct. 27 | Yonkers

Recordings & Follow-up Resources

• New York Archives Conference 2026 - which features Cornell librarians!
• METRO's Digital Culture of Metro NY Community Event
• Genuine Learning in the Age of AI
• We the Dead: Preserving Data at the End of the World
• Advanced Photo Preservation from Gaylord
• Perspectives on Accessibility Panel from Gaylord
• Your Campus Already Uses ChatGPT, Claude, and Copilot. Here’s How to Make Them Research-Ready. from Choice
• America at 250: Black Perspectives of the Founding Era Toolkit
• FOCUS Forum: Literacy Skills: Perspectives on Reading and Digital Fluency

Openings in the Field

• Grant Writing & Development Consultant for ESLN (remote)
• Assistant Librarian - Systems Librarian at SUNY Broome
• Digital Accessibility Assistant at Binghamton University
• Research and Instruction Law Librarian at Cornell University
• Stewardship and Prospect Research Program Manager at Corning Museum of Glass
• Development & Marketing Associate at Edith B Ford Memorial Library (Seneca Co.)
• Access Services Assistant at Hamilton College (Oneida Co.)
• DHPSNY Preservation Specialist (Philadelphia / NYS / remote)
• Executive Director at the National Soaring Museum (Elmira)
• PT Reference Librarian at Utica Public Library
• Reference Librarian (PT) at Finger Lakes Community College (Canandaigua)