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MES Hybrid Document Systems Archives Over A Century Of Documents For Ruthven Park National Historic Site

mes hybrid document services [1]In my opinion, there needs to be so much more of this done around the world: Document management company MES Hybrid Document Systems, Inc. [1] has announced the completion of a successful digitizing project for Ruthven Park National Historic Site [2], an Ontario property of national significance designated by the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada.

Ruthven Park is located in southern Ontario in Haldimand County. The 1,500 acre property was formerly the country estate and working farm for five generations of the Thompson family. The Thompson’s settled in the area in the 1830s and owned the property until 1993. Today, this unique site is open to the public for guided tours through an 1845 Greek Revival mansion, special events, education programs, walks on the trails, picnics and bird watching. A bird banding station is operated on the site by volunteers. Filming opportunities, photography and rentals for weddings and other private functions are also available.

Ruthven Park enlisted MES Hybrid to evaluate available digitizing and archiving options to make this one-of-a kind-collection available for the public, researchers and school through the website and onsite visits. The project involved archiving more than a century’s worth of historic letters, ledgers, journals, war memorabilia and photographs. Given the collection’s age and fragile nature, the work had to be managed with extreme care.

The MES Hybrid solution consisted of microfilming, scanning, indexing and implementing a “FileDirector [3]” document management system. To address disaster recovery, Ruthven Park stores the microfilm in a secure facility separate from the digital and paper collections.

“This project allowed Ruthven Park to provide digital copies of historical records that have never been seen before by the general public,” said Kevin D’Arcy, vice president of sales and marketing at MES Hybrid Document Systems, Inc. “Our solution helped Ruthven Park make huge progress in bringing their history into the future and preserving it for years to come.”