Letter to the editor

Dear Editor,

The Orchard Historical Society would like to thank the people of Orchard and its surrounding communities for the interest and support shown to us over the years. With that support, we have restored the Rex Theatre and the District 57 one-room schoolhouse.

The society desires to take on the project of digitization of the Orchard News newspapers dating back to 1902. These papers are currently on microfilm through 2003 but not out on the World Wide Web. That’s over 5,000 newspapers full of history, but only accessible by using a microfilm reader at the Orchard Library or at History Nebraska-the Nebraska State Historical Society in Lincoln.

By digitizing and archiving the accounts of the Orchard News, we will be making that history easily accessible and readily available. This will put historical accounts at the fingertips of anyone interested. By digitizing the newspapers, it will connect the community to its past in a very tangible and meaningful way.

Historical newspapers, documents and records can put historical events in perspective, allowing us to view those events through the lens of someone who was there and witnessed history as it happened. It will become a wonderful resource for genealogists, history buffs or for settling an argument about the score of a ballgame in 1975!

This cultural asset must be protected and preserved so future generations can have access to the “first draft of history”.

A second phase of the project would be to microfilm and digitize the newspapers from 2004 on. The society hopes to move forward with that phase in the foreseeable future and when funds allow.

Won’t you please help us in any way you can? A mere $1.50 will preserve one weekly edition of a newspaper from the past.

Funding for the Orchard Historical Society and the services we offer to the general public depends entirely on donations, fundraising proceeds and competitive matching grants for new projects we apply for and are awarded based on merit. Donations to the Orchard Historical Society, an independent, volunteer-based, nonprofit, tax- exempt, 501(c)(3) organization, are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.

Checks should be made payable to the Orchard Historical Society and mailed to the Orchard Historical Society, 51281 861st Rd, Orchard, Nebraska 68764. Donations can also be sent through Venmo to @Orchard-Historical or with PayPal to @orchardhistorical.

Thank you so much for your interest and support. Your generosity will be appreciated for many generations to come.

The Orchard Historical Society