Missouri Historical Society

The Missouri Historical Society will process and digitize 73 linear feet of film and prints created by the Sievers commercial photography studio from the 1930s through the 1960s. These images capture the civic and personal lives of St. Louisans during an era when the city experienced a rapid decline in population through suburbanization and loss of manufacturing. Items selected for digitization will be based on subject matter and condition, with the most endangered negatives then placed in freezer storage. The museum will employ two full-time, temporary positions—a processing archivist and a digitization archivist—for 24 months. The museum also will provide access to and promote the use of the material by publishing the index, records, and digitized images on its website, making them freely downloadable for all.