OHS Wins Lieutenant Governor’s Ontario Heritage Award for Excellence in Conservation

OHS Wins Lieutenant Governor’s Ontario Heritage Award for Excellence in Conservation

Prestigious Provincial Heritage Award Presented to the OHS for “Digitization and Sharing of Ontario History Journal Archive”

The Ontario Historical Society (OHS) is thrilled to announce that on Thursday, February 18, the OHS accepted the Lieutenant Governor’s Ontario Heritage Award for Excellence in Conservation for the “Digitization and Sharing of Ontario History Journal Archive”.

Ontario History journal, formerly Papers & Records, is one of the oldest history journals in Canada, established by the Ontario Historical Society (OHS) in 1899. From 2013-20, the OHS digitized the full text of over 2,000 articles and book reviews from 280 issues, making the archive the largest single collection of stories about Ontario’s history. The journal’s archive contains a wealth of original documents and new research, written by a range of prominent Ontario historians, and comprises one of the most important sources for the history of the province. Through digitization, Ontario History journal has been made available to a much larger audience, and it has also been safeguarded for the use and enjoyment of generations to come.

Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, Her Honour Elizabeth Dowdeswell (top left), Ontario Heritage Trust CEO Beth Hanna (bottom left), and Ontario Heritage Trust Chair John Ecker presented OHS Project Manager & Librarian Sarah McCabe (bottom right) with the award during a virtual award ceremony on February 18, 2021.

“The Society is honoured and privileged to have the work of our staff and volunteers recognized,” said Dr. Michel S. Beaulieu, President of the Ontario Historical Society. “Their efforts to digitize the full text of over 2,000 articles and book reviews, ensures students, teachers, historians, researchers, genealogists, and anyone interested can access our archive of Ontario History articles, the largest single collection of stories about Ontario’s rich history.”

OHS Project Manager and Librarian Sarah McCabe accepted the award on Thursday evening, commenting “On behalf of the OHS, I was thrilled to accept the prestigious Lieutenant Governor’s Ontario Heritage Award for Excellence in Conservation. My involvement with the initiative to digitize and provide access to Ontario History journal began in 2015, under the Ontario Trillium Foundation grant-funded OHS Reach project. Building on previous work by my OHS colleagues, and in collaboration with the Board’s Ontario History Committee, it’s been my privilege to research how to address the many challenges involved (copyright, open access, financial sustainability, technology, etc.) and implement solutions. This award recognizes years of work and contributions, both intellectual and financial, by many people. What an honour!”

The OHS acknowledges the many generous members, subscribers, and donors who have supported the Ontario History digitization project, including the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, and the Government of Ontario through the Ministry of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries, and the Ontario Trillium Foundation.

Please visit the Ontario History Digital Archive at https://ontariohistoricalsociety.ca/back-issues/.