ACCESSING THE DISCOVERIES OF THE PAST – THE SECOND GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF PENNSYLVANIA PROJECT

The Second Geological Survey of Pennsylvania (1874-1889) produced an unprecedented volume and quality of geologic reports, described in 1924 as “the most remarkable series of reports ever issued by any survey”. The output of the Survey resulted in over 80 texts, nearly 600 accompanying maps and illustrations, a hand atlas, a six-volume grand atlas, and miscellaneous other publications. A treasure trove of geologic, economic and historic information, these publications were not well indexed and present a challenge for users and librarians alike. Additionally, Survey publications were printed on acidic paper which is now brittle and subject to extreme browning.

The purpose of the 2nd PaGS Project was two-fold: to preserve the publications of the Survey and to digitize and index their content. The project involved creating a comprehensive listing of all publications of the survey, obtaining preservation and digital copies of microfilmed texts, scanning color plates and illustrations, preserving oversized plates, designing a scheme for recording preservation information, editing and organizing the scanned images for presentation on the Internet, assigning a metadata scheme, and creating an interface for users to search, browse and access the content. Some of the challenges that were overcome include designing a way to safely and rapidly flatten maps that had been stored folded for over 100 years, determining ways to utilize MARC fields to record preservation information, and establishing standards for recording preservation actions on original pieces.

Researchers of the future now have access to the discoveries of the past in a way the original authors could hardly have dreamed. The digital 2nd PaGS collection provides unprecedented access to the work of early geologists and to information about the geologic and mining history of the Commonwealth.