Community Digitization Day – Nashville Sites x Nashville Queer History

Nashville, Tenn. (Sept. 27, 2022) – Today, Nashville Sites and Nashville Queer History, in a collaborative project funded by the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s Telling the Full History Preservation Fund, announced a Community Digitization Day on Saturday, Oct. 15 at the Vanderbilt University Center for Digital Humanities. The event will take place from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. and is free and open to all.

The goal of the digitization event is to connect with members of Nashville’s LGBTQ+ community as they share their stories and add materials to the digital archive (www.nashvillequeerhistory.org/archive). Items that can be added to the collection include photographs, scrapbooks, diaries, T-shirts, event fliers or tickets, and more. Visit www.nashvillequeerhistory.org/events/ to learn more about the digitization process.

“Much of the material culture related to Nashville’s LGBTQ+ history does not exist in any local archive or library institution, so we are trying to change that with the Community Digitization Day,” explained Sarah Calise, founder and director of Nashville Queer History. “We are also interested in recording oral histories with people who have memories being involved in the region’s gay community going back decades.”

Participants can register to bring in their materials to be digitized at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdEhgEQhPmRr_BZXcjmcSQDew8BX0AuzAO8v_O1l-Ly2HzeVg/viewform?usp=sf_link. Drop ins are also welcome.
The digitization day is presented in partnership with the Vanderbilt University Center for Digital Humanities, the Vanderbilt University Jean and Alexander Heard Libraries, and the Vanderbilt University Digital Commons.

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Nashville Sites is a program of the Metropolitan Historical Commission Foundation, an organization whose mission is to assist the Metro Historical Commission in its efforts to identify, protect, study and interpret the rich history of Nashville. Nashville Sites offers free, self-guided thematic walking and driving tours about Nashville’s history and culture. Learn more at www.nashvillesites.org

Nashville Queer History is a community partner of the MTSU Center for Historic Preservation, whose mission is to identify, preserve, interpret, and sensitively promote and sustain historic environments through “best practices” programs and activities in academic scholarship, field work, and experiential learning. Nashville Queer History is a community organization and digital portal whose mission is to research and share the LGBTQ+ history of Nashville and Middle Tennessee in hopes of inspiring local activism, education, and inclusion. Learn more at www.nashvillequeerhistory.org