With the 150-year anniversary of the Treaty of Cession coming up, numerous historical societies and museums are pulling out all the stops.
The Father Andrew P. Kashevaroff (APK) State Library, Archives, and Museum is opening an exhibit this fall on the sesquicentennial, and an important aspect of the exhibit will be the 150-year-old documents on display. Paper conservator Seth Irwin is in charge of that effort, and will provide a peek into his process this weekend.
At 2 p.m. Saturday at the APK lecture hall, Irwin will address attendees via videoconference to discuss his process of preserving the maps and documents that will be on display this fall. He spent six weeks restoring the documents this spring and summer, and will show before and after photos of the artifacts.
He’ll also answer questions and give tips on how people can preserve their personal photos and papers as well. Irwin has worked with museums and historical societies in Anchorage, Eagle, Homer, Kenai, Kodiak, Petersburg, Valdez and Wasilla as well.
The presentation is part of the Alaska State Library’s Summer Lecture Series. Professor Saankaláxt’ Ernestine Hayes will talk about history and heroes in August, and in September Jackson Polys (aka Stephen Jackson) will speak about his work on the Seward shame pole that was recently raised in the Saxman Totem Park near Ketchikan.
