Community Transcription: One Week On

Wow, what a week! One week ago we began a new phase in documentary editing by opening the PWD archives to volunteer transcribers. Using Scripto, CHNM’s open-source transcription tool, PWD has now opened up many pages of previously-untranscribed documents to the public; volunteers have already begun the important work of transcribing them.

In one week we have added nearly 120 new transcribers. About half of those volunteers had previously volunteered to help transcribe, but nearly half of them signed on after our launch. The transcription volunteers range from graduate students to retired editors to librarians.

Our volunteers got right to work; within hours we had our first transcribed pages. To date, editors have nominated some 70 documents for transcription, and our volunteers have begun transcribing most of those. We have more than a dozen finished documents–those have been protected from further editing. The transcribed documents represent varied topics, from military orders to status reports.

Additionally, users have opened more than two-dozen conversations using the discussion feature. Topics range from questions about transcription formats to suggestions for other transcribers. One volunteer suggested that another transcriber’s document referred to a horse, and not a house.

It appears that the community generated transcription is well on its way to becoming an important resource for researchers. As we register more volunteers, we are excited about the possibilities. We are widening our outreach, and fully expect continued success in this important partnership between private editors and public volunteers.