Founders Memorial Library has begun to put some of its historical documents into digital form.

The digitization lab was created in 1998 by director of digitization Drew VandeCreek because he was interested in making history databases public.

The lab is an online database full of historical documents. It also has a large variety of audio and video collections and can be used as a resource by students.

When VandeCreek first created the lab, he wanted the focus to be on humanities and history.

“For chemistry you need your textbook and chemicals to do experiments,” VandeCreek said. “To study history, you need more than a history textbook.”

The lab takes original historical library materials, some of which are very rare, and then scans them to put them into the databases. They are working on a number of projects including “Illinois during the Civil War, 1861-1865,” and “Illinois during the Gilded Age, 1866-1896.” The lab also is working on a Southeast Asia digital library that will be available in October.

“I started it because I like the chance of looking at major historical figures like Mark Twain or Abraham Lincoln in context, and wanted to help make them public,” VandeCreek said.

The digitization lab is funded by federal grants, private donors, the state library and other sources including the National Endowment for Humanities and the Institute for Museum and Library Services.

The lab helps students with research papers and also provides jobs that improve tech skills. Professors can tell students to go to the database to see how a historian would view documents of the past, VandeCreek said.

The historical database can be found at dig.lib.niu.edu or in the library. This can be helpful for any history student or someone looking to view historical documents and learn more about the past.