Edward: A similar situation went on here in Tennessee in Maury County. The solution here, tho it took time, was for the local Historical Society/Genealogy Library to take over the records older than a certain date and clean things up and organize. They first removed everything from the pigeons and rats and put them into a clean sotrage location, then sorted through everything and organized it. They are mainly a volunteer group with funding from local businesses helping out. Would something like this be possible? The library was put in the old Sherrifs Dept building/jail which was renovated for this purpose. I have not been to Attala County, so I don't know if the county population would be very interested. Trish Elliott-Kashima, Lawrenceburg, TN ----- Original Message ----- From: <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Monday, May 03, 2004 11:21 PM Subject: [MSATTALA] Attala Records Rapidly Being Lost > I went to the Courthouse in Kosciusko today in search of some police court > records dating from about 1900. > > The specific records that I was seeking, if they are yet extant, are to be > found in the attic above the main court chambers. Alas, this area is not only > unlit and gloomy but there is ample evidence to suggest it is also home to many > rats and pigeons. To further discourage researchers the records are > scattered and in no discernible order. > > I have been searching through the records available at the Courthouse and in > the Chancery Clerk's office for many years, so I was not surprised to see the > sad state in which these records repose. Still, I can't help but wonder if > there is not something that can be done to preserve these old records of our > ancestors. > > I wish there was someone to blame. We could then rise up in righteous > indignation and acting collectively we could perhaps bring about a change. > Unfortunately, there is not anyone we can point to as the culprit. The public > officials that I have met have been uniformly helpful and courteous. They seem as > unhappy about this situation as I am. Like me, they are not eager to rummage > through records that are not only crumbling but which, given the bird droppings, > have come to pose a health concern. > > There is always the tendency to ask who is to blame when very often the > better question is what's to blame. Many problems simply result from a flawed > system. I think this is such an instance. > > As we live in an era in which the national government is often the court of > first resort, perhaps it is possible that federal funds could be obtained for a > preservation effort. Given the tenor of the times, it may be that we could > make the case that funds should be allocated to remove the ledgers and records > because of the threat they pose to the poor pigeons. I suspect we could also > prove the indigenous rats are being seriously inconvenienced by the presence > of such thick books. Thus framed, I feel sure the government would not only > encourage our efforts but would probably mandate them. > > Anyone have a better idea? Or should we just resign ourselves to the > inevitable loss of this part of our heritage? > > Edward Hutchison > Madison, MS > Attala County Genealogy > > > ==== MSATTALA Mailing List ==== > Have you visited the Attala Historical Society web site? The URL is http://www.rootsweb.com/~msahs/ > Now would be a good time to support the Attala Historical Society! >

It might be possible to find grants to do this too. Just a thought. I know a lot of places give grants to Librarys. Vickye