Archivist of the United States Allen Weinstein and Google co-founder and president of technology Sergey Brin have announced the launch of a pilot program to make holdings of the National Archives available for free online. This agreement will enable researchers and the general public to access a diverse collection of historic movies, documentaries, and other films from the National Archives via Google Video (http://video.google.com/nara.html) as well as the National Archives Web site (http://www.archives.gov).
The pilot program undertaken by the National Archives and Google features 101 films from the audiovisual collections preserved at the Archives. Highlights of the pilot project include the following:
* Motion picture films, primarily from the 1930s, that document the history and establishment of a nationwide system of national and state parks. Included is early footage of modern Native American activities, Boulder Dam, documentation of water and wind erosion, Civilian Conservation Corps workers, and the establishment of the Tennessee Valley Authority. A 1970 film documents the expansion of recreational programs for inner city youth across the nation (
http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=owner%3Anara+type%3Aparks&so=0).
The National Archives and Google are exploring the possibilities of expanding the online film collection and making the Archives' extensive textual holdings available via the Internet.
Source: National Archives Public Affairs Office, http://www.archives.gov