The holdings of the Archives
reflect the schism between the "old" inhabitants of Barre - the
Yankee farmers and merchants - and the "new" immigrant population.
The Barre Historical Society was
formed in 1915, at a time when immigration to Barre was at its height and the
local population felt a great deal of cultural pressure. The types of material
collected by the Society reflect their concern in documenting and maintaining
the traditions and culture of the first settlers of Barre.
During the 1970s, at a time when
interest in ethnic history and culture was growing, The Aldrich Public Library
received a grant from the U. S. Department of Education to collect information
on the immigrant population of Barre. Through the auspices of the Barre Ethnic
Heritage Studies Project, the Library acquired material in many formats,
including manuscripts, photographs, and oral history tapes.
In 1980 the Barre Historical
Society disbanded and donated its collection to the Aldrich Public Library.
Through a grant from the National Endowment
for the Humanities, the two collections were merged. Finally, in 1992,
through a grant from the National
Historical Publications and Records Commission, the entire manuscript
holdings were processed and cataloged. One result of the grant was the
publication of Guide to
the Manuscript Holdings of the Archives of Barre History As well,
the Archives has loaded these records on a computerized database, which may be
found on ARCCAT, a union catalog of
manuscript and archival collections at Vermont repositories.
