Explore the history of OHIO buildings with Homecoming Wikimedia Edit-a-thon

All members of the OHIO community are invited to dive into the digitized past of Ohio University through yearbooks and archival sources via the Wikimedia Commons during a drop-in edit-a-thon event at Alden Library.

The edit-a-thon focuses on OHIO buildings and anything and everything Athens County. The event is free, open for all and will take place Friday, Sept. 27 from 4 – 6 p.m. in Alden Library room 251. No prior experience is necessary and snacks will be provided, so stop by as long as you would like.

Under the umbrella of the Wikimedia Foundation , Wikimedia Commons is a site where all images are kept that go on Wikipedia. Participants will learn how Wikipedia images are created, extracted, added to articles and how to categorize those images. Librarians and archivists will be on hand to help lead the session and provide instruction for participants for how to edit and add images.

The purpose of the event is to enhance the coverage and accuracy of OHIO’s historic buildings with an opportunity to learn, share knowledge and improve public information about the architectural gems at OHIO. Materials from the Archives and Special Collections, such as yearbooks and files on buildings, will also be used.

Greta Suiter , manuscripts archivist, and Jonathan Brier , data services librarian, are co-hosting the edit-a-thon event. Brier explained that he hopes participants will come and learn useful skills as well as gain some new knowledge.

“I want to help the Ohio University and Athens community know that there's an opportunity to engage in different ways with the Libraries, and it's something that they actually can be a part of to help expand areas of their interest,” Brier said. “Whether it be research or just [a] particular interest in OHIO’s history.”

Suiter agreed and mentioned that because the event takes place during Homecoming week, both past and present students have the chance to get connected with OHIO.

“If participants come to the event and learn one thing, one fact about the history of OHIO, about a building at OHIO, [a] person at OHIO, or even if it just sparks memories of their times at OHIO, that is a win for all,” Suiter said.

Make sure to stop by Alden Library’s Learning Lab room 251 on Friday, Sept. 27, from 4 – 6 p.m. for this fun way to explore the history and current state of OHIO's Athens campus, as well as learn about adding images to the largest online open platform.

For more information about the event, contact Suiter at suiter@ohio.edu or Brier at brierjon@ohio.edu .