Repurposing Library Cards

When I was interviewed for this job in 1999, the one library related task that I admitted to not enjoying was the filing of catalog cards.

Q:  Guess where a couple of those old card catalog file cabinets are now?


Although the first library catalog cards were repurposed playing cards, we repurpose old library catalog cards into obituary cards in the BDC.  The names on the cards are listed in our Online Obituary Index.  (The VIEW button shows you the image of the database entry form for an obituary - not the actual obituary). 

The obituary index is a docent project that pre-dates my tenure.  Docents who have labored on the obituary index are: Virginia Adams (deceased), Jan Johnson, Merle Hoagland, and now Laura Lewis.  People keep dying.  As long as the local newspapers keep posting obituaries for us to capture, we will continue this project.  

Customers from all over the world visit our Research Room to read and photocopy the published obituaries at 10 cents per page.

Genealogists from all over the world request photocopies of the published obituaries at a fee set by our Library Board of Trustees.

Why not drop by the Research Room and peruse the obituary cards for your ancestors or for other of Beaufort County's previous residents?  Just remember that the Research Room is closing each workday until Aug. 14th for lunch, Noon to 1 pm.

You can read the Library History Buff blog entry about "First Library Cards were playing cards" here.