Member Update – Annapolis Maritime Museum

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Impact Grant Expands Public Access of the Annapolis Maritime Museum’s Growing Digital Archives

ANNAPOLIS, MD – The Annapolis Maritime Museum received a Strategic Impact Grant from the Arts Council of Anne Arundel County to build a virtual database of archives. This timely grant is making a big impact for the Museum’s online collections, and the Museum’s database has already encouraged local historians to submit their private collections for public use.

Over the past month, William Keyworth has been working with dedicated volunteers at the Annapolis Maritime Museum to digitize and make public his collection of thirty-seven color Kodak slides with vivid images of skipjacks on the Chesapeake Bay. These impressive photos were captured in the 1970s and 1980s, and can now be publicly accessed on the Museum’s website.

John Gudas - volunteer Will Keyworth - donor

Many local residents remember a time when skipjack fleets sailed up and down the Chesapeake Bay, but they are scarcely seen today. Mr. Keyworth, explaining the motivation of his work, summarized, “I used to work in a boatyard repairing skipjacks, and these images capture moments in our local history when skipjacks were prolific on our beautiful Bay.” The photos display skipjacks sailing the Bay and in periods of maintenance, as well as the Sandy Point Lighthouse, Chesapeake Appreciation Days, catboats, and images of racing.

The Annapolis Maritime Museum deeply appreciates William Keyworth’s donation and continues to strive to make all of its collections more readily available to the broader public. Caitlin Swaim, the curator of the Annapolis Maritime Museum, is especially excited about this newest addition to the museum’s online archives. Swaim noted, “The online database allows the Annapolis Maritime Museum to reach a much wider audience and provides both historians and the public with new collections and resources for research.”

The Annapolis Maritime Museum is now accepting new submissions for the online database, where it will continue to build a local archive of maritime history.

The Annapolis Maritime Museum is a 501(c) 3 nonprofit organization dedicated to educating students and adults on the area’s rich maritime heritage and the ecology of the Chesapeake Bay through programs, exhibits and community events. The Museum partners with community groups, government entities, and other like-minded organizations to deliver high-quality educational initiatives and programs on subjects ranging from history and culture to the environment and good stewardship practices.

Submitted by M.K. Richardson, Annapolis Maritime Museum, July 19, 2016

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