I’m catching up on some press releases recently received. This one from FamilySearch details a new scanning project with the Ontario Genealogical Society excites me because of my own Ontario connections and those of many clients.

FamilySearch and Ontario Ancestors Announce Book Scanning Project

FamilySearch Canada Digital Book Initiative

Ontario Ancestors and FamilySearch International announced their new book scanning partnership. Under the agreement, FamilySearch will provide specialized book scanning services and support volunteers in exchange for access to Ontario Ancestors’ extensive library of historical and genealogical books. Digitized documents will be publicly available on both websites. Digitization is scheduled to begin by the end of 2020, depending on pandemic restrictions.

This agreement is a first for a genealogical society in Canada. Steve Fulton, UE, and president of Ontario Ancestors, said, “This agreement has no direct cost to us, but the benefits to the society are immeasurable.” Fulton added that the agreement is a direct result of many conversations Ontario Ancestors has had with a number of partners, and [it] is a key to delivering on the society’s goal of building up its digital presence by utilizing strong partnerships.

Dennis Meldrum, FamilySearch manager of book scanning partnerships, says Ontario Ancestors has one of the largest collections of family history and genealogy books in Canada. “It will be a privilege to work with Ontario Ancestors to digitize and share their impressive collection of books not under copyright,” said Meldrum.

This is the second time the two organizations have partnered on records preservation and access. The first digitization project was the Vernon Directories that began in 2019 (Search the Ontario Vernon Directories).

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