Researching state history, perhaps your family’s history, is getting easier thanks to the Secretary of State’s office and your computer.
It’s called the Missouri Digital Heritage Initiative ; Secretary of State Robin Carnahan’s push to put more and more of the state’s historical records and documents online. Carnahan says the move to digital history has already proven popular. Carnahan says the Secretary of State Web site has already gotten millions of hits for its death records alone, vital sources for researching family history.
The initiative creates a partnership between the State Archives and the State Library and local governments, public libraries and other community groups. Educational and informational online exhibits will be developed. History curriculum based on state education department standards will be created.
Records once tucked away in dusty bins in various corners of the state will now be available on the Web. Those records include transcripts from the trial of Frank James, information on the New Madrid earthquake and the naturalization of 19th century immigrants who came to this country through St. Louis.
Download/listen Brent Martin reports (:60 MP3)
