Going Digital: Open-Source Access Tools at the SCRC

Abstract

The success of the online projects of the Earl Gregg Swem Library’s Special Collections Research Center (SCRC) has been built utilizing open-source platforms. Our three primary online resources, the SCRC Collections Database ( http://scrc.swem.wm.edu) , the W&M Digital Archive ( http://digitalarchive.wm.edu ), and the Civil War Transcription Project ( http://scrcdigital.swem.wm.edu ), would not have been possible on a traditional subscription model. While open-source platforms are not the panacea for libraries and archival repositories, they can be used to great effect.