MONTPELIER — The Vermont Department of Tourism and Marketing and Middlebury College have announced the completion of a project that has digitized more than 72 years of “Vermont Life” magazine. Every issue of the magazine can now be accessed online through the Middlebury College Archives.
“Vermont has developed a strong reputation for its natural beauty, outdoor recreation, quality products, and business innovation,” said Wendy Knight, Commissioner of the Department of Tourism and Marketing. “The online archive of ‘Vermont Life’ will allow people to explore the state’s history and culture over the last seven decades.”
“Vermont Life” magazine was a quarterly magazine covering Vermont’s “people, places and culture.” The state-owned publication was founded in 1946 and printed its last issue this past summer. All “Vermont Life” issues were digitized from originals held by the State of Vermont, Middlebury College Special Collections, and the Dorothy Alling Memorial Library.
Digitizing was done as part of a class at Middlebury College called: “Vermont Life’s Vermont: A Collaborative Web Project”. The class was a hands-on experience for students in preserving these stories and images for future generations.
“This is a story of new, experimental academic efforts of faculty and students partnering with archives and libraries,” said Middlebury College Director of Special Collections & Archives Rebekah Irwin. “It is our natural role, after all, to preserve and safeguard. We are really interested in the archives as an academic resource. Students will benefit we hope, not just here, but across Vermont.”