The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Library’s Special Collections has completed a major grant-funded project to digitize the records of the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union of Chattanooga, making them freely available online to researchers and the public worldwide.
The newly published digital collection preserves documents dating from 1882 to 1995, with 53 archival records and more than 175 individual images. It includes charters, bylaws, correspondence, financial records and photographs, many of which were transcribed to make them fully text-searchable.
“This is an underrepresented history,” says UTC manuscripts archivist Molly Copeland, the project’s principal investigator. “Being able to provide access to the records we do have helps ensure we’re able to preserve that legacy.”
The project was supported by a 2024 Tennessee Historical Records Advisory Board programming regrant funded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission and administered by the Tennessee State Library and Archives. Assistant Head of Collection Services and Special Collections Director Carolyn Runyon served as co-PI.
Founded nationally in 1874, the WCTU became one of the most influential women’s organizations of the 19th century. Chattanooga’s chapter began in 1882 following a visit from national president Frances Willard and went on to open a boarding house for self-supporting, unmarried women, later known as the Frances Willard Home, which operated near UTC’s campus for nearly 50 years.
Work on the digitization project began in late 2024, with UTC political science major De’sha Wilkins spending six months scanning, transcribing and describing documents. While a few fragile items were not digitized, they remain accessible through Special Collections’ published finding aid.
Copeland emphasized that the project goes beyond making documents available online.
“Digitization enhances usability because we’re able to create detailed descriptive records for each item, providing important context about when and how the records were created,” she says.
The outreach effort also included public presentations, social media, a student blog and an article submission to the Society of Tennessee Archivists’ upcoming newsletter.
Highlighting the project’s broader impact, Runyon says, “When we add a new digital collection, we offer widespread, equitable access to the primary sources that tell Chattanooga’s story. It’s Special Collections’ way of democratizing access.”
With this addition, UTC Special Collections now hosts 60 digital collections, preserving and sharing pieces of the city’s cultural and civic identity. For Copeland, each new collection “helps make Chattanooga part of the larger historical conversation,” ensuring local stories are preserved and discoverable for generations to come.