Case Study

Bring Stories to Life: Capture the Complete Narratives in your CMS

Wanderground Lesbian Archive/Library, a New England-based organization dedicated to preserving lesbian culture and heritage, sought a way to capture and share the rich narratives behind their extensive collection. After years of searching for a user-friendly cataloging solution, they adopted CatalogIt which enabled them to document the complete stories of their objects and make these narratives accessible through the CatalogIt HUB. Read on to learn how CatalogIt has empowered Wanderground to preserve and share the deeper significance of their collection with a wider audience.

Wanderground houses a vast collection of publications, artifacts, and personal memorabilia, particularly from the time period 1950-2000.

Seeking a Comprehensive, User-Friendly CMS

Founded by educator and consultant Mev Miller, Ed. D, Wanderground Lesbian Archive/Library collects and provides access to a broad selection of publications, artifacts, and personal memorabilia, with a special emphasis on materials from 1950 to 2000—an era Mev describes as “the heyday of lesbian culture and organizing.” Although officially established in 2022, the archive’s roots go back over 40 years to Mev’s personal collection of archives, letters, diaries, periodicals, books, music, and more. The organization serves as a hybrid archive, library, and museum, with a particular focus on cultural items from the New England region, alongside national and international materials.

With such a vast collection, Wanderground needed an effective cataloging system to document the intricate details of their objects and share them with their community and beyond. When Mev was referred by a friend to connect with Dan Rael, CatalogIt’s Co-Founder, Wanderground had already been actively seeking a CMS for a couple years. “The process took two or three years because I looked at library programs and found them completely unsatisfactory. I looked at museum programs and found them completely unsatisfactory, as well,” said Mev. “Some things were just too difficult to use, too expensive, or too time-consuming.” 

However, after meeting with Dan and learning more about CatalogIt, Mev found it to be a strong match for Wanderground’s needs. “I spoke with one of my colleagues and after looking it over together, we agreed—of everything we’ve seen, this seems like the best fit for our purposes,” said Mev. As a fully volunteer-run organization, it was crucial for Wanderground’s CMS to be user-friendly and easy to implement. The platform's web-facing feature, the CatalogIt HUB, was also a key factor. “We wanted to be able to have our internal catalog but then also allow the public to see it,” said Mev. “Having that web-based interface was very important to us.” Using CatalogIt and sharing their collection on the CatalogIt HUB enables their community members, researchers, and others to view their objects online and explore their history and significance.

Wanderground’s growing online collection is available for browsing on their website and on the CatalogIt HUB.

Preserving the Complete Narrative of an Object

Since adopting CatalogIt, Wanderground has been expanding its online collection on the CatalogIt HUB, adding images, context, and reference links to enable their community and the general public to explore their collection on the web. This accessibility is a key objective for the archive, along with creating thorough and detailed records. “I like that we can add pictures, documents, links to websites, and other references [to the entries],” said Mev. "One of the things we're doing now, which I think is really important, is building stories behind the materials. We want to tell fuller stories rather than only having a picture and date of an item.” Capturing the full story of an object enriches its significance and helps preserve connections to the past, allowing others to understand and appreciate the greater depth of these items.

As an example, Mev recalled a story behind an object from the 1980’s, originating at the Greenham Common Women's Peace Camp—a series of protest camps established to oppose the placement of nuclear weapons at RAF Greenham Common in Berkshire, England. Many women camped there for months, including a few of Mev’s friends. During one action to gain access to the military base, they cut through a chain link fence surrounding the area. Upon their return, they gave a piece of the fence to Mev, which is now part of Wanderground’s collection. “Now I can present that piece of the chain link fence and say, this is how I acquired it,” said Mev, who aims to document all of these details in Wanderground’s CatalogIt entries. “This is the story behind it. This is the object itself. And here are additional things you can read about it."

Wanderground enriches their collection by documenting each object’s full story, incorporating historical context, personal anecdotes, and detailed descriptions into their CatalogIt entries.

Another example includes a story Wanderground is developing about a local lesbian-owned, feminist, vegetarian restaurant that has been in business for 45 years. “I worked there for a while and know many people who have frequented the place. I collected their stories, asking what made the restaurant special, why it was meaningful, and why its existence is important,” said Mev. “These personal accounts help illustrate its significance."

Using CatalogIt, the Wanderground team can document these stories, the relationships between items, and their historical context, transforming objects into rich records that capture their complete narratives. The organization hopes that these connections will inspire deeper engagement with their collection, both online and in person. “One of the goals is not just to have the items, but to share why they're meaningful, why they're important, their historical purpose, and how people are connected to them- no matter what the item is,” said Mev.

Wanderground welcomed community members to explore their collections in person during their October 2024 open house.

Expanding a Physical and Digital Presence

Wanderground continues to collaborate with volunteers to catalog its collection and stories, aiming to create a more comprehensive and accessible online catalog. After years of storing items in Mev’s home, Wanderground moved into a new space in May 2024 and hosted an open house in October. The space will primarily serve as a place for volunteers to help organize and catalog items.

Wanderground also envisions expanding the space into a community center where people can learn about lesbian culture and participate in events like readings and workshops. In the meantime, they are building out their digital collection on the CatalogIt HUB, also accessible on their website. “We will showcase our collection through the website, making many of our materials public so people can see what we have,” said Mev. “That way, if they decide to visit, they'll know what to expect.”

Wanderground Lesbian Archive/Library

New England
results

“One of the goals is not just to have the items, but to share why they're meaningful, why they're important, their historical purpose, and how people are connected to them- no matter what the item is."

Mev Miller

Educator, Consultant, and Founder of Wanderground
Plan Type

Museum

Conservator

Personal

Organization

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