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<p>Results from a West Tennessee Cultural Institutions Survey will be the focus of a Dec. 15 presentation at the Martin Public Library located at 410 South Lindell Street in Martin. The presentation is open to the public and will begin at 6:30 p.m. The project was funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities.</p>
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<p>Sam Richardson, UT Martin archivist and J. Houston Gordon Museum curator, and Dr. Erik Nordberg, Paul Meek Library dean, will provide project overview. Much of the detailed work was completed by graduate research assistant Elysia Duke and summer student interns Grant Bivens, Rhiannon Crossno, Elijah Davidson and Dan McDonough. During the event, the students will share their experiences traveling to more than 100 agencies across 21 counties to gather data, assess the general status of collections and encourage future collaboration.</p>
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<p>The survey confirmed each agency’s status and created an institution-level summary of research collections, staffing, budgeting and preservation conditions for heritage materials. While the project intended to confirm, reveal and promote the availability of historical records held by archives, museums, and municipal offices, the survey also reported on artifact collections, historic sites and interpretive programs.</p>
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<p>This event is part of the UT Martin Research Series and is co-sponsored by the Martin Public Library, the Weakley County Historical and Genealogical Society, the university’s Division of Academic Affairs, and the Paul Meek Library.</p>
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<p>For more information, contact Nordberg at 731-881-7070 or Katie Parr, director of the Martin Public Library, at 731-587-3148.</p>
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