Viewing entries posted in July 2016

Rex Healthcare Library Newsletters

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Cross-section of the base of a human skull, from a Rex Messenger cover article introducing Rex Hospital’s new CT scanner, January 1982

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From an article on the benefits of breastfeeding (Nursing Perspectives, September 1992)

A newly digitized collection of newsletters from Rex Healthcare Library in Raleigh, N.C., are now available on DigitalNC. The six newsletters range from 1977-2008. The Rex Healthcare Library collection reflects major changes in the life of a hospital over the the past four decades, from attitudes toward smoking, holiday celebrations, recycling, and childcare; to the advent of computers and new medical technology.

Rex Hospital opened in Raleigh in 1894. After relocating to different Raleigh sites in 1909 and 1937, it moved to its current location at  Lake Boone Trail, Raleigh, in 1980. In 1995, Rex Hospital changed its corporate name to Rex Healthcare to reflect the variety of care facilities it provides. Today, the private, not-for-profit Rex is part of the UNC Healthcare system. It is one of the largest employers in Wake County, N.C.  You can learn more about the history of Rex by looking at materials the NCDHC has digitized from them, including this history published in 1957.

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Stanza from a poem in the August 1995 issue of Nursing Perspectives

Admitting control board 1981 cropThree of the newsletters — the Rex Messenger, the Rex Hotline, and Pulse — focus on general hospital staff, employees, and friends. The Messenger is the oldest newsletter in the collection, spanning 1977-1998. It includes extensive pieces on the history of the hospital and covers the hospital’s centennial celebration in 1994. Two other newsletters, Nursing Perspectives and CaREXpress, center on the patient care division of the hospital; while RCare  specifically treats the hospital’s move to electronic record-keeping. The newsletters also ran employee profiles, gave updates on hospital procedures, printed poetry and fiction by hospital workers, and published letters from patients; and they report on activities Rex Hospital sponsored in the surrounding Raleigh community.

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One feature in the January 1987 issue of the Messenger asked reporters to imagine what life would be like for Mandy Foster — the first child born at Rex Hospital in the new year — when she became a teenager in the year 2000. Several people suggested Mandy might work in the space program. Others speculated on how technologically savvy she would be. An RN reflected, “I’m not sure what the year 2000 will bring to the new baby, but I surely hope it will include the ‘human’ touch and won’t be all ‘machine-to-machine’ conversations or fetch-and-carry robots or ‘push-button everythings.’ ” (Read the full feature here .)

To learn more about Rex Healthcare Library, please visit their contributor page or the website. To see all of the newsletters available from the NC Digital Heritage Center, please visit here.

 

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A Rex Hospital Data Control worker stands next to a horoscope bulletin board she designed (Rex Messenger, February 1979)

 

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From the Rex Hotline (March 2, 2001)

 

 

 


Jewish Historical Society Photos

Kraft Family Bat Mitzvah Celebration. 1954

Kraft Family Bat Mitzvah Celebration. 1954

Digital NC is happy to welcome more additions from Jewish Historical Society of Greater Charlotte located at the Levine-Sklut Judaic Library Resource Center! 30 new photos add rich documentation of the Jewish community in Charlotte, with images dating from 1890 t0 1983.

These are the first images provided by the Judaic Library and they offer a window into Charlotte’s past. Many of the images include well-researched descriptions that provide the names and dates of important people and businesses that helped Charlotte become the Queen City that we know today. Most of the descriptions contain  specific locations, making it possible to Geo-tag the images, which are in prominent places at the city center.

Below are a few highlights from the collection:

Harry Golden at his former home in Charlotte.

Harry Golden at his former home in Charlotte.

Jewish young people, 1915

Jewish young people, 1915

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To learn more about the Jewish Historical Society of Greater Charlotte located at the Levine-Sklut Judaic Library Resource Center, please visit the contributor page or their home page.

 


15 Years of the Raeford News-Journal now available on DigitalNC

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Thanks to our partners at the University of North Carolina at Chapel-Hill and the Raeford News-Journal, 15 more years of the Raeford News-Journal are now available on DigitalNC!  With this addition, more than 1,000 issues of the paper are now online, dating back to 1943.

Local newspapers served an important role in the life of small communities, detailing happenings in town, including milestones in the town’s growth and development.  For example, the issue pictured below from October 1972 describes the plans for a new shopping center in the area. Researchers interested in genealogical research or community development over several decades of the twentieth century will find these local papers useful.  Check out all of our digitized community newspapers browsing the North Carolina Newspapers Collection.

 

The News-Journal, October 19, 1972, page 11

The News-Journal, October 19, 1972, page 11

You can view all of the digitized editions of the News-Journal from Hoke County at the following link. To learn more UNC-Chapel Hill, which contributed this paper, please visit the contributor page where you can see many other community newspapers that are preserved at the university.


New additions to the Polk County News now available on DigitalNC!

Polk County News, December 18, 1924, page 13

Polk County News, December 18, 1924, page 13

Thanks to the Polk County Public Library, DigitalNC has now published 3 more years of the Polk County News!

These issues add to the nearly 800 other issues of the paper (also known as the Tryon Bee) that are already online. Like many newspapers from small communities in North Carolina, the paper was a source of local events, advertisements, national and international stories, serialized novels, regular columns, and style information.

All of the issues of the Polk County News are an excellent source for genealogical research, as the paper covers many of the comings and goings within the town.

To learn more about the Polk County Public Library, please visit their contributor page or their website.

Polk County News, January 07, 1926, page 1

Polk County News, January 07, 1926, page 1


Warren County Memorial Library, a new partner, has newspapers now online!

The Warren Record, January 04, 1929, page 5

The Warren Record, January 04, 1929, page 5

The Warren Record, April 05, 1929, page 7

The Warren Record, April 05, 1929, page 7

The Warren Record, April 12, 1929, page 7

The Warren Record, April 12, 1929, page 7

 

DigitalNC is excited to welcome our new partner, the Warren County Memorial Library, located in Warrenton, NC!

As their first contribution to DigitalNC, we are happy to publish several decades of The Warren Record newspaper. The issues date from 1929-1938 and from 1959-1970 are available for research and exploration.

The Warren Record was a weekly community newspaper that offered stories from both local and national headlines. During the earlier decades, it also included a page that was dedicated to the interests of women. The paper often reprinted popular fashion articles and images that were fresh from the New York runways. Like the images presented above, they present a unique look into the styles that women were exposed to during the early twentieth century, even in rural areas of North Carolina.

Browse all the issues of the Warren Record that are available on DigitalNC here. To learn more about this new partner, the Warren County Memorial Library, please visit their contributor page or their website.


Army News for Army Men: the Trench and Camp now available on DigitalNC!

Trench and Camp, October 15, 1917, page 1

Trench and Camp, October 15, 1917, page 1

53 issues of the “Trench and Camp” are now available on DigitalNC courtesy of the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library. They cover October, 1917 through December 1918.

The Trench and Camp newspaper was published for soldiers living in the 32 domestic cantonments during World War I, like those living at Camp Green in Charlotte. Published by the National War Work Council of the YMCA and in partnership with local city newspapers (these issues were published in partnership with Charlotte Observer), the Trench and Camp was filled with information that would be important for the activities and moral of soldiers who were often far from home. The central New York editorial office supplied half of the material and the local publisher supplied the second half, as well as the adds.

These editions are excellent resources for those interested in communication during war time, as these papers were seen as direct communication between the President and those serving their country. They also contain some great illustrations, like those seen in this post.

The historical information used in this post can be found in the Kautz Family YMCA Archives at the University of Minnesota, which holds many editions of the Trench and Camp from the other 32 domestic camps around the United States. To learn more about our contributor, the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library, please visit their contributor page or their homepage.

Trench and Camp, April 08, 1918, page 1

Trench and Camp, April 08, 1918, page 1

Trench and Camp, October 29, 1917, page 1

Trench and Camp, October 29, 1917, page 1

 


Back issues of the Winston-Salem Chronicle now available on DigitalNC

Winston-Salem Chronicle, September 05, 1974, page 1

Winston-Salem Chronicle, September 05, 1974, page 1

Winston-Salem Chronicle, January 15, 1996, page 1

Winston-Salem Chronicle, January 15, 1996, page 1

 

Thanks to the active Winston-Salem Chronicle, which is still in publication, and to the Forsyth County Public Library, DigitalNC now has back issues of the paper available online. The issues date from 1974 to 1996.

The Winston-Salem Chronicle is the city’s oldest community newspaper. The first issue was published in 1974 and it has since been a well-respected, weekly news source that focuses on the African American community in the city.These issues could be excellent resources for those interested in studying community development and activities from the perspective of a minority voice, which
is sometimes overlooked in mainstream media.

To see all of the recently digitized editions of the Winston-Salem Chronicle, click here. To see more community newspapers that are available on DigitalNC, please visit the North Carolina Newspapers Collection.

Visit the Forsyth County Public Library to learn more about the Winston-Salem Chronicle and other resources. You can access the contributor page here.


New Photographs Added from the Benson Museum of Local History!

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Library Children’s Program

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Charlie Gilbert and Otis Porter in the Barber Shop

Nearly 100 new photos are now available on DigitalNC thanks to our partner, the Benson Museum of Local History!

Many of these photos have excellent documentation of names, locations, and dates. Genealogists, local historians, or Benson residents may find these resources helpful.

These images add to the many others from this collection available online, documenting Benson and the surrounding communities. The photos depict individuals and families, schools and businesses, and many of the local traditions that shape the culture of this small community, like the Mule Day Parade.

To see more images from the Benson Museum of Local History, please visit their contributor page. To learn more about the museum and plan your next visit, please their homepage.

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William G. McLamb family, Mary Stewart Community

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Rufus Ira Pleasant Sr.


New Batch of Student Newspapers from the University of North Carolina at Asheville: Now Online

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Pictured above, left to right: UNCA Student Newspapers March 01, 1970; November 04, 1970; February 09, 1970

The newest addition to the North Carolina Newspapers Collection comes to us from the University of North Carolina at Asheville. These student newspapers span several decades and portray the changing trends at one of North Carolina’s well-known artistic institutions.

Student newspapers can often be sources of historical and cultural documentation. UNCA has an active mass communication program and their student newspaper has served as an outlet for many students on campus over the years. It is easy to track the political trends both within the community and nationally through many of the articles, images, and ads that highlight current events. Researchers could find these useful for studying popular culture and political activity.

One such highlight from this batch of newspapers documents Leonard Nimoy’s visit to campus during the 1970’s. Nimoy was a well known actor from the Star Trek franchise, where he played Mr. Spock.

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The Ridgerunner, April 22, 1975, page 7

To learn more about the University of North Carolina at Asheville, please visit the homepage. To see all their items available on DigitalNC, please visit the contributor page. To see the student newspapers available online from your community or school, check out the North Carolina Newspapers Collection.


Blueprints and Documents for the Kings Mountain Post Office Added to DigitalNC

Full Scale Details of 5" Letters

Full Scale Details of 5″ Letters

We have worked with Kings Mountain Historical Museum to digitize many large, detailed blueprints as well as other documents regarding the construction of the post office in Kings Mountain, North Carolina. These are now available on DigitalNC. There are 46 blueprints from the 1930s and 1960s, showing features of the floor plans for the post office as well as details such as mechanical and electrical plans, entrances, windows, lettering, lock boxes, and even the locations of plants. Additionally, there are documents about the construction of the post office and maintenance and repair over the years, giving insight into the communications between the federal government and a smaller, local institution in the 1930s and 1960s.

More materials from the Kings Mountain Historical Museum can be found through their contributor page, and you can learn more about them from their website and previous blog posts about a Civil War diary and Red Cross World War II scrapbook.

First Floor Framing for Kings Mountain Post Office

First Floor Framing for Kings Mountain Post Office


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This blog is maintained by the staff of the North Carolina Digital Heritage Center and features the latest news and highlights from the collections at DigitalNC, an online library of primary sources from organizations across North Carolina.

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