Bradford County Historical Society

At the Bradford County Historical Society, it is common for us to hear visitors tell us how much of a historical and genealogical treasure we have here in our facility. They come from other counties, states, and countries and often express the wish that the historical society in their own hometown had an educational museum like we do, or they wish their research library was as extensive as ours. We are reminded that our mission of preservation and education is so important, and that our supporters are vital to our work.

Each year, our Annual Appeal campaign is a major portion of our budget, and the 2024 Appeal has begun. Our goal this year is $180,000. Your financial support allows us to leverage additional funds by using them as a match for grant applications. Some of the areas that we need to address are:

Heating/Air Conditioning: We have consistently replaced outdated non-operational HVAC units in various parts of our facility for the purpose of providing the correct environmental conditions for the long-term storage and display of our collection. This enables us to preserve this history for future generations. We still must replace HVAC in the lobby areas, second floor of the museum, and the third-floor storage rooms. The cost of this project is $88,000. Will you partner with us to provide the correct conditions for our collection?

Great Room Roof: The rubber roof on our Great Room must be recoated and sealed to provide protection from water for years to come. We have patched leaks as necessary, but it is beyond time to recoat the roof. The Great Room hosts all our educational programming, fundraising events, special exhibits, and school tours. The cost of the project is $42,950. Will you partner with us to protect our educational space by updating the Great Room roof?

Digitization: Our research library microfilm reader/printer model has been discontinued by the manufacturer and toner cartridges or parts are now no longer available. While we have applied for a grant to replace the machine with a digital microfilm scanner, this is only a temporary solution. Our next project will be the digitization of the nearly 1,000 rolls of unique newspaper microfilm and other records in our collection, making access much easier, and protecting our microfilm as a backup. The cost of this project is $49,150. Will you partner with us to digitize our microfilm for easier access by researchers for years to come?

We invite you to donate online at bradfordhistory.com/support or by filling out the enclosed form and returning it with your contribution. No donation to the campaign is too small. Donors who give $5,000 or more are permanently recognized on our Annual Appeal plaque. All donors will be recognized in our ANNUAL magazine and will receive a receipt for tax purposes. Thank you for considering what you can do to help preserve the history of Bradford County.