A pillar of and for so many in the Billings area, and a place with so much to offer the public – books, magazines, work-spaces, computer access, study and conference rooms, events, and even a coffee nook – the Billings Public Library at 510 N. Broadway is calling on its patrons, the very Billings community that it serves, to help the library realize their goal of allowing the public an opportunity to add their own photographs to the Billings Public Library’s Historic History Portal on the newly renovated Montana History Portal.

The project, the Billings Public Library Community Archive Project, calls on any and all in the community to, from March 1st to May 1st, submit digitalized copies of photographs they took between the years 1960 and 1999 of Billings landmarks, events, and notable figures. The digital photographs that are submitted will be then added to the library’s Historic Photo Collection.

On May 12th, after the project has come to a close, MHP (Montana History Portal) Director Jennifer Birnel will deliver a presentation in the library’s Community Room from 5:30-7:00 pm. Jennifer’s presentation, free and open to the public, will touch on the updated MHP website as well as the vital importance of preserving local history. Additionally, many of the community’s submitted and collected digital photographs from the Community Archive Project will be on display.

For more information about this ongoing project, please call Joe Lanning at (406) 657-8294 or send him an email at lanningj@billingsmt.gov.