Worthington Memory is a cooperative partnership that includes Worthington Libraries, the Worthington Historical Society and other community organizations. Our mission is to digitize local history materials and make them available in a digital library.
The digitization program was originally developed in 2001 as the community prepared to celebrate Worthington’s bicentennial in 2003. The Worthington Historical Society seeded the site with several hundred items, establishing a core collection upon which to build.
Throughout the bicentennial celebration contributions were sought from over 30 organizations.
Volunteers have been integral to the program. In 2004, as his Eagle Scout service project, student volunteer Joe Miracle expanded the call to for submissions to individuals. In addition, more than 50 members of the community have helped with many aspects of the project, including scanning items, indexing newspapers and transcribing documents.
Worthington Schools has also been involved. When the Worthington Bicentennial Steering Committee made funds available for competitive Bicentennial Teacher Grants during the 2002-2003 school year, administered through the Worthington Education Foundation, 13 teachers created lesson plans incorporating content found in Worthington Memory. At the end of the school year, the outcomes of those lessons became part of Worthington Memory.
We invite you to explore and engage with life in Worthington, discover our rich history and share your own local history treasures through Worthington Memory.