Hingham Moves to Digitize Historic Town Records

The Hingham Select Board has approved a $40,000 initiative to digitize historic town records, a move aimed at preserving key documents and making them more accessible to residents.

The project will begin with records from the town’s historic department, with officials viewing it as a pilot program that could eventually expand to other departments. The digitization will be handled by an outside consultant, eliminating the need for additional staff work.

A Step Toward Modernization

The effort comes as part of a broader discussion on improving town record-keeping and protecting critical documents from potential damage or loss.

“It would allow us to protect those records from catastrophes such as flood and fire and back them up forever,” said Tom Mayo, Hingham Town Administrator.

While digitization has been a long-term goal, town officials see this as an opportunity to start with a manageable scope before considering future expansions.

“I was hoping to bite off a small bite-sized chunk that we can begin with, dip our toe in the digitization waters, get the software, get familiar with it, see how it works at relatively low risk, and not, importantly, not require staff time along the way,” Mayo added.

Costs and Future Considerations

The estimated cost of digitizing all town records is over $1 million, which led officials to take a phased approach, starting with historic documents.

“There’s a lot of records here. It would be a very big effort to take this on as a town-wide project,” Mayo said.

Town officials are also exploring potential grant opportunities to help offset the costs, particularly for digitizing Board of Health records and library archives in the future.

“There will be grants available for the Board of Health records when we get to that department,” Mayo said. “They’re not ready for this level of effort yet with their records, but there will be grants for Board of Health and there likely would be for perhaps a library.”

Select Board Weighs Priorities

While board members agreed on the importance of preserving town records, some questioned whether this was the best use of funds at this time.

“In theory, I think this is a great idea. Anything moving towards the 20th century, let alone 21st or future,” said Liz Klein, Hingham Select Board Member. “My concerns with this are just capacity, workload. I think everyone has a very full plate already.”

Despite the concerns, the board ultimately approved the initiative, emphasizing that the project would not add to existing staff workloads and could serve as a model for future digitization efforts.

“If we only do historic digitization, that would add value,” said Joe Fisher, Chair of the Hingham Select Board. “I think it’s worth it. It is not in my top 10, but I see the merits in it.”

Next Steps

With the funding approved, the town will move forward with hiring a consultant to begin the digitization process. The project is expected to take one and a half to two months to complete.

As technology continues to evolve, town officials say this is just the first step in modernizing Hingham’s record-keeping systems, ensuring historic documents are both preserved and more easily accessible to residents.

To watch the full video of the meeting, visit Harbor Media. 

For more Hingham news from South Shore Times, be sure to check out our Hingham homepage.