Thanks to the farsightedness and sense of adventure of several talented photographers, snippets of life in 19th and 20th century Southeast Alaska were preserved for those of us in the 21st century to glimpse, wonder about, and reminisce upon. But equally important to the preservation is the vision of some equally avid collectors who know the key to an enlightened future is being able to see the past. In this case, it is Sitka’s past, and the boundless curiosity of collector Romaine Hardcastle.

Romaine was a museum technician for the National Park Service (NPS), and came to the Sitka National Historical Park in the mid-60s, a rather pivotal time for the park development and the Alaska purchase centennial celebration planning. With her particular gifts, she was able to build a sizeable and historical collection of local photos.

Ms. Hardcastle donated this collection of photos to Kettleson Memorial Library in the 1980s. She organized the 800-photo collection in 12 categories ranging from wildlife to buildings to everyday life to celebrations and other gatherings.

For a quarter of a century, the albums have been viewed by very few. Thankfully, the Institute of Museum Library Services offered a grant opportunity that coincided with the goals of the library and the tribe; now we are on the verge of making these photos be available to literally everyone in the world through the use of technology and digitization. Through the efforts of Robi Craig of Sitka Tribe of Alaska (STA) and Cheryl Pearson of the City & Borough of Sitka, the merits of the project were recognized, and STA was awarded a one-year grant to accomplish archival of this priceless collection.

Four wonderful and substantial products came out of this grant project. The first is the Sitka Tribe of Alaska library website. All photos on this website are property of Sitka Tribe of Alaska and subject to copyright law. The second major result of this project is the printed and framed photos that have been posted throughout the Sitka library community. The third outcome is the improved storage and access to the original Romaine Hardcastle photo collection at the Kettleson Memorial Library. Fourth, through this grant project, the Sitka library community was able to meet and provide public outreach regarding this project. Outreach included a Sitka Tribal Newsletter article, a Sitka Sentinel Feature in the Weekender edition. The Southeast Alaska Indian Cultural Center joined the Sitka Historical Society, NPS and STA in hosting a wonderful reception honoring Ms. Hardcastle and the collection near the end of the project.

Community committee members representing the Kettleson Memorial Library, Cheryl Pearson; Sitka Historical Society, Karen Meisner; NPS, Greg Dudgeon, Sue Thorsen, Gene Griffin, and Kristen Griffin; and tribal citizen June Degnan all offered guidance and acted as advisors throughout the undertaking. Additional STA personnel staffing this project included Jess Perkins, Jessica Unmack, Robert Sam, and Kathy Hope Erickson.