Digital Commonwealth Collections

Digital Commonwealth is a non-profit collaborative organization, founded in 2006, that provides resources and services to support the creation, management, and dissemination of cultural heritage materials held by Massachusetts libraries, museums, historical societies, and archives. Digital Commonwealth currently has over 200 member institutions from across the state.

Biblia Sacra, 1632, donated by Bishop John Cheverus to Nahant Library in 1819

The William Wood Book Collection of 1819 represents the still-extant titles from a reportedly “ten hundred” volume collection that was originally given to Nahant residents by William Wood, a summer resident, creating Nahant’s municipal library in 1819. His gift made this one of the oldest municipal book collections in the Commonwealth (Franklin’s being the oldest). The collection was available for town use but was not yet free – instead, borrowers were supposed to pay “Four Pence ½ for the small volumes, and Nine Pence for the larger…then, the amount shall be expended in Forest Trees, and Shrubs…in order that your pleasant abode may be rendred [sic] delightful by shade.” This project was taken on later by Nahant resident and “Ice King” Frederick Tudor, and the collection became fully tax supported in 1872. The growing collection, housed in the old stone schoolhouse and later the old town hall, was moved to its current building in 1895. This project, completed in 2023, was funded by a grant from the Nahant Community Preservation Committee.

Climbing Fumitory

The Florence Johnson Herbarium contains pressed plants gathered by Nahant grade school teacher Florence “Miss Flossie” Johnson and her pupils. Ms. Johnson taught from 1881 to 1927. Most notable are the specimens stamped “Mass Horticultural Soc., Boston, Nov. 26, 1897.” These were entered into the Horticultural Society’s exhibition, winning a prize of $6 for being “most remarkable, both in point of numbers [184] and the quality of the mounting,” according to the Society’s booklet for that year. This collection, for years stored out of public view, can once again be appreciated for its information and its artistry. It was uploaded in 2020 as part of a two-year “Nature in Nahant” grant, with federal funds provided by the Institute of Museum and Library Services and administered by the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners, and additional funding from the Community Preservation Committee and the Friends of the Nahant Public Library.

Hunnewell Family, 1972

The Mass. Memories Road Show is a statewide, event-based participatory archiving project that documents people, places, and events in Massachusetts history through family photographs and stories. Archivists and public historians at the Joseph P. Healey Library at UMass Boston collaborate with local planning teams and volunteers to organize free public events where individuals bring photographs to be copied and included in a digital archive. Contributors are invited to describe the photographs in their own words. In addition, they may choose to share “the story behind the photos” on video, have their own “keepsake photo” taken, receive advice from professional archivists and historians on caring for their family photos, and learn from one another about the history of their community. Since its launch in 2004, the Mass. Memories Road Show has digitized thousands of photographs and stories from across the state. The Nahant Road Show took place at Nahant Town Hall on April 1, 2017. The Mass. Memories Road Show was produced by the University Archives and Special Collections Department at the Joseph P. Healey Library, UMass Boston, co-sponsored by the Patricia C. Flaherty ’81 Endowed Fund. Additional funding for the project was provided by the Friends of Nahant Public Library and the Nahant Cultural Council.

Egg Rock with Lighthouse by John Erik Christian Petersen, c. 1870.

Artifacts in Your Library was a 2021-22 project to better preserve and interpret the historic art and Native artifacts in the library, bringing them to a wider audience and helping residents better enjoy the history of Nahant. You may now see the artworks as high-resolution digital images and search them for detail. The Native exhibit can now be known to scholars and the descendants of the Massachusett tribe that once encamped in Nahant. We were also able to better identify items in need of restoration. A notable piece in the collection is the 1846 Alonzo Lewis map, jointly owned by the Library and the Nahant Historical Society, which now hangs in the main hall. The Digital Commonwealth images will enable you to look closely at which families had property and homes then, and what other features have changed over the years since. It was uploaded in 2020 as part of an “Artifacts in Your Library” grant, with federal funds provided by the Institute of Museum and Library Services and administered by the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners, and additional funding from the Community Preservation Committee and the Friends of the Nahant Public Library.