Celebrate American Archives Month with us by voting for your favorites from among featured items from our rare and unique holdings. During the month of October, thirty selected items from Special Collections will be competing for the public’s vote.
In this three-part contest we will ask you to choose your (a) favorite William & Mary related item, (b) the most surprising entry, and (c) the most interesting historical item. Voting on the selected letters, photographs, film, scrapbooks, memorabilia & artifacts, as well as other material, presents a great opportunity to learn about these impressive highlights from Swem’s Special Collections.
Voting is open to all members of the William & Mary community as well as the general public and will be conducted both on-site and online. Individuals may vote once online (at Facebook, Flickr, or Pinterest) and once on-site per category. Voting will end for the three separate categories on Monday, October 8th at 8am, Monday, October 15th at 8am, and for the special two-week Homecoming finale on Monday, October 29th at 8am respectively. Two winners will be selected for each category – one from online and one from on-site voters – with a grand prize student winner at the end of American Archives Month. Winners will receive Swem Library gift packages, including flash-drives, sticky notes, pencils, notecards, and other “Swemorabilia”. The grand prize student winner will receive a personal behind the scenes tour of Special Collections for up to 5 friends including refreshments on the Special Collections balcony as well as a “Swemorabilia” package.
American Archives Month is a collaborative effort by professional organizations and repositories around the nation to highlight the importance of records of enduring value. Archivists are professionals who assess, collect, organize, preserve, maintain control of, and provide access to information that has lasting value, and they help people find and understand the information they need in those records.
Entrants agree to have any comments on their ballots used to promote Swem Special Collections’ Archives Month Top 10. Winners agree to have their name and likeness used to promote Swem Library Special Collections. The contest is open to William & Mary students, faculty, staff, alumni, and the general public with the exception of Special Collections staff, who will be choosing the winners. Entrants may not reserve any rights in or to the submission. The decision of the judges is final. Void where prohibited.