Digitization Projects: University of Iowa Libraries Plans to Digitize Collection of 10,000 Science Fiction Fanzines

From Iowa Now:

The University of Iowa Libraries has announced a major digitization initiative, in partnership with the UI Office of the Vice President for Research and Economic Development. 10,000 science fiction fanzines will be digitized from the James L. “Rusty” Hevelin Collection, representing the entire history of science fiction as a popular genre and providing the content for a database that documents the development of science fiction fandom.
Hevelin was a fan and a collector for most of his life. He bought pulp magazines from newsstands as a boy in the 1930s, and by the early 1940s began attending some of the first organized science fiction conventions. He remained an active collector, fanzine creator, book dealer, and fan until his death in 2011. Hevelin’s collection came to the UI Libraries in 2012, contributing significantly to the UI Libraries’ reputation as a major international center for science fiction and fandom studies.
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The fanzine portion of the Hevelin Collection, numbering approximately 10,000 fanzines, will be digitized in its entirety.
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Once digitized, the fanzines will be incorporated into the UI Libraries’ DIY History interface, where a select number of interested fans (up to 30) will be provided with secure access to transcribe, annotate, and index the contents of the fanzines. This group will be modeled on an Amateur Press Association (APA) structure, a fanzine distribution system developed in the early days of the medium that required contributions of content from members in order to qualify for, and maintain, membership in the organization. The transcription will enable the UI Libraries to construct a full-text searchable fanzine resource, with links to authors, editors, and topics, while protecting privacy and copyright by limiting access to the full set of page images.

Read the Complete Announcement
Learn More About the Collection (via Hevelin Collection Tumblr)
See Also: April 11, 2012 Announcement About U. of Iowa Libraries About Acquisition of Hevelin Collection
See Also: Ui To Digitize 10,000 Fanzines (October 21, 2014; via The Daily Iowan)

Filed under: Digital Preservation, Libraries, News