Progress on the Blueprint Collection

We are making steady progress on the digitization of the Blueprint Collection.  We have completed the cataloging and description of 500 blueprints, primarily from the Boston Elevated Railway and the West End Street Railway.  You can see the data here.

By the end of the day, we will have scanned approximately 50% of the blueprints.  Each scan is a TIFF, at 400 dpi.  At this resolution, we will be able print out full-size images to help with restoration projects.

Lower resolution scans will ultimately be available to the public at our Galleries in Digital Maine, probably some time in September 2015.

If you can't wait to see some of the images, check out our photo collection of title boxes.  The image quality on these isn't up to archival standards, but they're fun to browse anyway.

Update on the Blueprint Project

Progress continues on the blueprint project. We finished cataloging 500 prints (and there are boxes and boxes more still to unroll).  The large majority of the prints come from the Boston Elevated Railway, with a smaller percentage from the West End Street Railway.  Scanning has begun.

We made an interesting discovery as we were working with the prints. Many of the prints are clipped together with a cute little paperclip, called an Owl Clip.  Here are some of the clips with their beefier, modern-day descendant:

The Owl Clip was first advertised in 1905 by the Owl Supply Co. of Boston and is still produced today by ACCO Brands.  The modern ones are 1" long; our antique ones are .75".  The Early Office Museum has a whole page devoted to the history of the paperclip, if you are interested in learning more.