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Adult Summer Reading 2022: Oceans of Possibilities

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The Morristown & Morris Township Library is offering a free, no-stress Summer Reading Contest for adults! Sign up at any of our service desks. You’ll receive a gift just for signing up!

For any book you read or listen to this summer, fill out a raffle ticket and drop it in the box at the library, either near the front entrance or the Readers Advisory desk on the second floor. There will be a weekly drawing for a prize.

At the end of the summer, all participants will be entered into a GRAND PRIZE drawing!

Any Main cardholder age 18+ may participate. The contest runs through September 2, 2022.

Friends of Foote’s Pond Wood Won the Morris Park Alliance Environmental/Conservation Award!

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Adjacent to Thomas Jefferson Elementary School is the 24-acre Foote’s Pond Wood park. The Friends of Foote’s Pond Wood (FoFPW) is ” a welcoming, grassroots group dedicated to the care and preservation of Foote’s Pond Wood.”

Recently, the FoFPW was granted the 2022 Community Recognition Award from the Morris Park Alliance. The award is currently on display right here at the Morristown & Morris Township Library! Stop in when you get a chance to check it out.

To learn more about the FoFPW and their mission, be sure to check out their website.

Ongoing Libby Server Maintenance

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Between May 3 and July 28, 2022, Libby will perform server upgrades to enhance the performance and security of the systems used to access the digital collection.

These upgrades will be completed between 6 a.m. and 8 a.m. Eastern Time on Tuesdays and Thursdays only during the period noted above. Your Libby service will be impacted only once for approximately 60 minutes or less.

Patrons will still be able to sign in to the digital collection and browse or read titles, but may encounter errors when attempting to borrow, place a hold, or return titles during your maintenance period.

We apologize for any inconvenience.

NJ HealthConnect@YourLibrary Provides FREE iPads to Borrow!

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In order to tackle the inequities in our healthcare system, the Morristown & Morris Township Library is proud to provide iPads through our partnership with NJ HealthConnect@Your Library!

These iPads allow you to:

  • Obtain access to telehealth apps, which can connect you to a doctor 24/7.
  • Read health information in your language.
  • Monitor COVID updates.
  • Access crisis hotlines.
  • Obtain mental health support.
  • Access teen help.
  • Utilize meeting apps, such as Zoom and Google Meet.

The iPads come in an Otterbox case with:

  • a quickstart guide
  • multilingual instructions
  • a charging cable
  • a base plug
  • earbuds.

In order to prevent any personally identifying information from being stored:

  • sign in ability is disabled
  • password saving is disabled
  • a manual reboot can be done by each user.

Upon return, library staff will wipe out the iPad between users. The Otterbox protected iPad as well as the included accessories are sanitized upon return. The iPads are CIPA-compliant and the telehealth apps are HIPAA-compliant.
To reserve an iPad, or to find out more, please call the Reference Department, 973-538-6161 or email info@jfpl.org

Local History in the News: Articles Written by the North Jersey History & Genealogy Center Staff

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Bastille Day protest with Julia Hurlbut leading the first group of marchers. Iris Calderhead of Kansas at right waiting for mobs to attack pickets so she can order out new banners, July 14,1917. Library of Congress photograph.
Local history is abundant within the Morristown community. The Morristown Green, the historic park that served as an encampment for George Washington in 1777, also serves as the name for Morristown’s local news site.
 

North Jersey History & Genealogy staff regularly publish articles highlighting aspects of the region’s history, particularly that of Morristown, Morris Township, and Morris County. Content is drawn from our collections and covers the individuals, families, businesses, and organizations that lived and worked in our state from the 17th through the 20th centuries. 

Created in partnership with local news site, MorristownGreen.com, past articles explored how local residents responded in times of war and national crisis, detailed individual participation in historic events, or just attempted to earn a living and better themselves and their community.
 
Most recently, the History Center staff highlighted Morristown’s Early African American History through the lenses of longtime residents John and Clara Watson Pinkman. This year, they also highlighted Morris Township’s architectural changes – such as present-day Columbia Park’s beginnings as Cedar Court.
 
The archive of these posts can be found here. Check back regularly to learn more about the history of the region, as well as articles that coincide with the exhibits organized by History Center staff and more.
 
The History Center actively collects material that documents the history of the people, places, and organizations that have made their home in New Jersey. In addition to assisting researchers and genealogists in our reading room, we regularly offer public programs, create exhibits, and make our collections available online. 

Morristown Blueprints Collection Open for Research

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The North Jersey History & Genealogy Center has opened the Morristown Building and Construction Blueprints and Records Collection to researchers. These records contain building designs for local businesses and homes, and related documentation submitted to town hall between 1909 and 1959. Some records include entire drawing sets depicting companies, retail storefronts, private residences, schools, and houses of worship, while others may only contain simple hand-drawn sketches for a new home patio, garage, or kitchen addition. As a whole, the collection offers a unique snapshot of Morristown’s development during the first five decades of the 20th century.

   

The collections consists of nearly 1,000 sets of blueprints, diazotypes, sketches, tracings, and other documents that comprised the permit application process for each property. Town officials reviewed drawings submitted for new construction, as well as significant alteration to existing structures, which often included detailed building elevations and floorplans. Each set typically specified the project’s location and owner (or builder), permit number, date, and often the lot and block number.

     

These materials will be of interest to the owners of the homes, businesses, and organizations that currently occupy the land. The records may also be useful to genealogists, town officials, as well as those studying the history of zoning laws, business trends, suburban development, architectural history and land use. Archivist, Jeffrey Moy began processing this collection with Archives Assistant, Tara Schaberg prior to 2020, but disruptions related to the Covid-19 pandemic halted work until late 2021.

Users must call ahead (973-538-3473) or e-mail (njhgc@mmt.mainlib.org) the History Center to request access to this collection so that staff have adequate time to retrieve material from storage. When requesting a set of drawings, please specify both the Drawer/Box and Folder number in addition to the full title cited in the finding aid.

Resources to Use From Home

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The Library subscribes to many resources you can use from the comfort of your own home, and many of them are also working with us to bring you more remote resources during these difficult times. Below are some of our resources to help keep you and your family entertained and informed while the Library is closed to the public.

There are also various additional although temporary resources becoming available from outside providers during this difficult and largely home-bound time. While we will list those resources that may be of interest to our patrons on this page, we will also note that they are an “outside provider” at the end of the description so you will be able to tell which resources are of this temporary variety, and not controlled by the Library itself.

We will be updating this list as necessary. You can also always check out our Research Database page for a list of many more resources available to you from the comfort of your home. We also have a post for resources geared towards educators, as well as one for resources geared towards children.

 

Entertainment

Libby/Overdrive

Libby is a platform for reading ebooks and magazines and listening to digital audiobooks. Our collection is always growing, and though our physical location is sometimes closed we are doing our best to keep up with your reading needs remotely! Visit the Libby/Overdrive page for information on how to download the app to a variety of devices.

 

 

Infobase Video on Demand

Infobase is currently offering free access to its products for our patrons through 6/30/20. These include a wide range of educational resources, as well as a Writer’s Reference Center and the aforementioned Video on Demand which also has a portal Just for Kids.

You can access all of these resources through 6/30/20 by logging in: the Username and Password to log in are both MAINlib.

 

Kanopy

Kanopy is a digital streaming service that includes feature films, TV shows, documentaries, and collections for kids. You can sign up with your library card and get started right from home. Our patrons usually receive 6 “play credits” a month, but right now, to help us all stay entertained during these difficult times, Kanopy is offering a playlist with a variety of videos that will not deduct from your play credits.

 

Virtual Arts Resources brought to you by MPAC

The Morristown Performing Arts Center has put together a list of resources for us to experience the arts from home, including streaming concerts, Broadway shows, virtual tours, and much more.

 

Scribd is offering free 30-day trials to anyone who would like to sign up using their email, Facebook, or Google account. They are not requiring a credit card to sign up, and are used and trusted by libraries throughout the U.S., including the New York Public Library. Scribd offers a collection of eBooks, audiobooks, and digital magazines. They may contact you after the 30 days asking for you to sign up. Please be aware that fees may be involved at that point. Outside provider.

 

TumbleBooks

Many of TumbleBooks resources are both educational and entertaining! TumbleBooks has something for all ages. TumbleBooks Library is an online collection of ebooks for children. They are a great way to encourage tech-savvy kids to enjoy reading! Access is unlimited – you can read 24/7, from the comfort and safety of your home! There are over 1100 titles, including 350 animated, talking picture books! The site also features graphic novels, read-along chapter books, and non-fiction books. TumbleBooks resources are easy to use, and feature unlimited access from home! You can read as many books as you want, when you want, on any device. There are no check-outs, holds, or bulky downloads. Books are available instantly. TumbleBooks also offers the following resources, free to our patrons through 8/31/2020:

 

RBDigital

RBDigital is a browser and app-based platform that includes both a large selection of current magazines on many topics, and a large collection of digital Marvel comics (strange bedfellows, you may say, but at least we’ve got variety!). 

 

 

 

 

Education, Research, & Information

 

Many of TumbleBooks resources are educational and entertaining! Check their information in the “Entertainment” section.

Our very own North Jersey History and Genealogy Center has a fantastic Digital Collections archive of photographs, art and text. Our materials range in subject matter from photographs of Morris County life by the early 20th century photographer Frederick Curtiss, the art of Thomas Nast and A.B. Frost, detailed historical maps and atlases, and many other images that document Morristown’s unique history. They also have available genealogical research databases and more research resources that you can use from home, so you can continue your family research.

 

JSTOR

JSTOR is an online database and has opened up it’s collection of over e-books and scholarly journals for free during this time of wide-spread closures to Universities and Libraries. JSTOR is working with publishers to make more of its content freely available, so if you don’t see what you need today, it might be worth trying again tomorrow! Outside Provider.

 

Mometrix

Test-prep and study database.

 

 

 

Scholarly Content Free on Project Muse 

In response to the challenges created by the global public health crisis of COVID-19, Project MUSE is pleased to support its participating publishers in making scholarly content temporarily available for free on our platform. With many higher education institutions moving into an exclusively online learning environment for the foreseeable future, we hope that easy access to vetted research in the humanities and social sciences, from a variety of distinguished university presses, societies, and related not-for-profit publishers, will help to support teaching, learning, and knowledge discovery for users worldwide. Outside Provider.

 

Gale COVID-19 Support

The Gale Database has put together an online resource center that includes:

  • Interdisciplinary, curriculum aligned resources to support online learning from pre-K through undergraduate
  • Live and on-demand training materials
  • Professional development eBooks to help transition to and strengthen virtual learning
  • Authoritative Gale resources on health-related topics and global issues

 

Recapture Family Images: Thursday, November 18, 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

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A one day scanning event at the North Jersey History and Genealogy Center

Preserve your family photos! Turn your photos, negatives or slides into printable image files.

Do you have special family photographs that you need scanned? The NJH&GC will scan your photos, negatives, or 35 mm slides in high resolution–for free! Using our high quality photo and slide scanner, we will scan your photos on the spot and transfer them to your USB drive. Also, if you have faded color photos, we will do our best to restore them to their original color.

REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED. Please e-mail us at njhgc@mmt.mainlib.org or call us at 973-538-3473 to reserve your session time.

LIMIT: 7 SCANS PER PERSON.

Read more Recapture Family Images: Thursday, November 18, 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. ›

Gone But Not Forgotten: Marion Orr Harris, a friend of the North Jersey History and Genealogy Center

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The Morristown and Morris Township Library and its North Jersey History and Genealogy Center is saddened to learn of the passing of Marion Ohr Harris. Marion generously provided financial support of numerous history and genealogy programs and services for quite some time. She also routinely donated historic preservation and genealogy newsletters from a wide number of societies from across the region. As a retiree, Marion compiled “Genealogy Gleanings”, highlights from the many genealogy newsletters and websites she keenly read, for The Morris Area Genealogy Society and gave The North Jersey History and Genealogy Center copies.

Marion also organized and co-sponsored with the library a lecture series titled, Protecting Natural and Historic Places during the spring and summer of 2016, which culminated in a day long symposium at Morristown National Historical Park’s Washington’s Headquarters Museum, titled Industrial History of Northwest New Jersey. Then in 2019 she sponsored a “Break Through Your Brick Walls” day at the library at which genealogists could meet one on one with professional genealogists for tips.

The staff of The Morristown and Morris Township Library, especially The North Jersey History and Genealogy Center, will be forever grateful for Marion’s support and offer our heartfelt condolences to her son David.

Read more Gone But Not Forgotten: Marion Orr Harris, a friend of the North Jersey History and Genealogy Center ›

NJ State Library Grant Helps Us Expand Our Early Literacy Technology!

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by Chad Leinaweaver

 

This summer, the Library received a CARES (Corona Aid Relief and Economic Security) Act Mini-Grant for our Spanish Language Outreach and Children’s Outreach Technology Project. This Mini-Grant allowed us to further expand possibilities for both Spanish-speaking, English-speaking and bilingual children. This project is supported with funds provided by the Institute of Museum and Library Services, administered by the New Jersey State Library.

Similar to other communities across the nation, both Morristown and Morris Township have seen large increases in the number of Spanish-speaking residents over the past decade. Though we have long purchased Spanish language adult books and eBooks as well as Spanish language children’s books for new readers to discover, we felt the next step in our efforts to provide beneficial services to our Spanish-speaking patrons was to expand our literacy efforts with a technology component. Thus, we purchased a new computer learning station from AWE Learning for our young patrons in the Children’s Room.  AWE Learning is a known leader in partnering with public libraries to provide educational computer stations that aid young children with early literacy and Spanish language literacy.  Various programs on these stations such as “Telling Time Games” and “Spanish School Bus” and about 40 others provide early literacy instruction in Spanish, while over 30 others such as “JumpStart Preschool” and “Monster ABC” provide for early literacy instruction in English, geared toward preschoolers who visit the Library with their families.  The bilingual software allows non-English speaking parents to share in the learning experiences of and with their children.  The learning station has additional educational modules, including “After School Edge,” focused on aiding children in their first years in grade school which includes “1st Grade Math” and other elementary age programs, as well as “Robo Garden,” which provides over 200 coding activities to aid young children in learning technology concepts. 

The Library has made a concerted effort to bring additional technology into the Children’s Room beyond the AWE Learning Station.  This effort has included purchasing mobile tablets known as Launchpads, electronic read-along book/devices called Wonderbooks, STEM programming, STEM kits and other technology-based items as part of a multi-year plan to provide new resources to our pre-K through grade 12 patrons. Come by our Children’s Room and check out all these exciting new offerings for yourself!

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