The Historical Society of Cecil County started tweeting last week as part of an initiative to tap into a cluster of additional social media outlets. Twitter, a micro-blogging platform, allows the volunteer group to send out brief notes up to 140 characters in length at any time. This, coupled with our other new media outlets, including the web, blog, YouTube and Facebook, allows the county’s herritage keeper to efficiently communicate with a broader audience.
If you’re interested in Cecil’s past follow them on Twitter for quick heritage updates about research resources, our collection, old photos, and local history news. In the digital age, this web 2.0 product makes it easier than ever for heritage organizations to communicate broadly and distribute content far beyond the walls of the institution.
The Society has been at the forefront of adopting new media technologies for sharing information since the mid-1990s. It was a spring day in 1996, back when the Internet was new and a less critical part of everyday life, that they created a presence for Cecil County history on the net. Beginning with that first generation site sixteen years ago, virtual visitors have been able to read articles from the newsletter, find information about the Society, and send e-mail queries on genealogy and local history. Over time, their virtual home, which is open around-the-clock, has grown as they’ve added more digital content. Five years ago the Society started blogging and four years ago the group joined Facebook, as ways to reach broader audiences directly with heritage news.
In the months and years ahead their goal is to deliver even more information through web 2.0 products as the social media editor, Kyle Dixon, works Cecil’s history beat. In addition they have some great plans for digitization and podcasts. Be sure to follow us them Twitter and Facebook as their volunteers turn to today’s technology to deliver the past.
Serving as the county’s heritage keepers is something this group has been doing for over 80 years now, especially as they care for the largest collection of county research materials available in any repository. Now the group is adding additional 21st century methods to make materials available to a wider audience.
Website: www.cecilhistory.org
Cecil County History Blog: www.cecilhistory.org/blog
Facebook: www.facebook.com/historicalsocietyofcecilcounty
Twitter: https://twitter.com/cecilhistory