Lincoln, NE – History Nebraska will name its new digitization lab in Lincoln for Donald R. Swanson, following a $50,000 gift to the History Nebraska Foundation from the Swanson Biggs Adams Family Foundation.
Swanson, who retired from Lincoln Telephone & Telegraph Co. as secretary-treasurer in 1987, died in 2017.
He long supported History Nebraska, its reference room and the addition of historical technology. The Swanson Biggs Adams Family Foundation continued Swanson’s legacy of support with a gift in 2021 to aid History Nebraska in its efforts to make its collections available online.
Recently, History Nebraska renovated the basement at its Lincoln headquarters and turned it into a full-time digitization lab, which will now bear his name.
“The Swanson Biggs Adams Family Foundation has long supported the archiving efforts that many Nebraskans rely upon for genealogical research,” said Libby Jacobs, president. “We are pleased to improve access to historical data that the digitization lab provides while at the same time honoring the passion that Donald Swanson had for Nebraska history.”
Tyler Vacha, executive director of the History Nebraska Foundation said the lab allows for a more efficient digitization process, provides space for larger equipment to digitize the oversized items in its archives and increased staffing.
In the last 18 months, History Nebraska digitized more than 100,000 records in house and 13 million records have been digitized through History Nebraska’s collaborations with outside partners. Yet, Vacha said, there are many millions more yet to digitize.
“With the new lab, History Nebraska has the space to add necessary equipment and allow staff to better coordinate and collaborate, leading to increased efficiency and faster digitization,” he said. “This generous gift from the Swanson Biggs Adams Foundation aids History Nebraska in providing access to our archives, and enables History Nebraska to truly make Nebraska’s history open to all.