Jessi Fishman Blog 9: Cape Elizabeth Shipwrecks

I think it was one of the first blogs that boy Jesse did for this class that was on one of the exhibits from the Maine Memory Network, and I found another one and decided it was interesting enough to blog about. This small online exhibition involves images and informative text related to Cape Elizabeth Shipwrecks.

The Cape Elizabeth Shipwrecks exhibit conveys a small historical blurb about, you guessed it, shipwrecks at Cape Elizabeth, and though it is a very small collection, it is put together nicely and makes for an interesting and informative exhibition.

Collection Principles
All of the exhibitions on the Maine Memory Network site are put together in order to showcase and educate about the history of Maine and important developments and occurrences in Maine culture and history. This small collection was put together to tell the story of a historically treacherous boating area, complete with informative blurbs that, along with the images, give the user a sense of the story itself. This small collection definitely fits in with the goals of the Maine Memory Network to really tell the stories and educate the public about the history of Maine.

Object Characteristics
For each image, a mid-sized jpeg is displayed on the its information page, with links to an enlarged version and a zoomable version of the image. The images come complete with a little bio or story that helps the user understand the history behind the photo. The exhibit itself offers a few points of access: a slide show, which leads the user through the images one page at a time, and a list view, which offers thumbnails and brief information on each image while listing all images in one page. Since this is such a small collection the user can find what they are looking for either way.

Metadata
The metadata listings for these objects are pretty good. The information page for each includes the description, or story, the title, creation date, media format, and LC subject headings. There is also a link to where you can contact the donor of the photo (in most cases here, the Maine Historical Society) for more information, and also a feedback form the user can fill out to give the Maine Memory Network more information they may have about a particular image. You are also able to send an e-card of the image, or purchase it online.


Intended Audience
The intended audience for the Cape Elizabeth Shipwrecks exhibit, and seemingly for the Maine Memory Network in general would probably be residents of the state who are interested in state history and culture, or scholars studying Maine history and culture. The Network also seems to be trying to gather more information from living Maine residents who may know more about these shipwrecks to further add to the collection. Other intended users could be scholars of sea travel and shipwrecks or people interested in disaster photography.