Preserving Southampton's Historic Maps, Officials Say, Is An Important Modern Task

In a vault in the bowels of Town Hall, the history of the Town of Southampton rests on climate-controlled shelves.

Well, as much of the written and drawn history as Town Clerk Sundy Schermeyer and Town Historian Julie Green can get their hands on. And preserve.

For the last decade or so, Schermeyer, with assistance from Green, has striven to protect ancient records and maps that offer insight into Southampton’s past.

One part of the effort entailed finding the most efficacious manner for storing and protecting giant maps — huge, heavy maps that were kept in equally big and ungainly books in a section of the walk-in safe.

“These maps are irreplaceable,” Schermeyer said, hoisting one of the massive document books. “They’re from the 19th century.”

Over 30 immense map books, measured in size by feet and pounds rather than inches and ounces, lived for decades in a massive wooden case, with shelves that reached to the safe’s ceiling.

The books held more than 800 historic surveys and maps and plans dating back to the 1800s, from the highway, planning and engineering departments, along with historic village maps, Schermeyer explained. They’re consulted internally by town officials researching such land aspects as easements.

“These are all the original blueprints and surveys as the town’s roadways were created,” Schermeyer continued, noting that individual community members will also ask to consult the maps for their own research. “It’s all land use,” she said. “This is all important information. While it’s historic, it’s still current.”

Throughout her time in office, Schermeyer procured allocations from the Town Board to first, digitize all the maps and town records. Next, the town clerk sought a different storage system for the maps. A new case allows them to hang, wrapped in Mylar, taking up just a fraction of the space as the books did.

“We researched to see what would serve us the best and what would be the most effective use of our space and to protect them for future generations,” Schermeyer related.

The map books didn’t have normal pages, the town clerk explained. The “pages” were made of cardboard, with maps glued to them, front and back. “They had to be carefully removed,” she said. “Then they’re de-acidified.”

As the glue seeped through, it was “browning” the paper. A lot of the ancient sketches also were done on cloth. “Each map was in a different type of medium,” Green reported. Cartographers used different ink; some were written on in pencil. “That ink starts to bleed,” she said. The material of the maps wasn’t protected, so people could handle them, adding to the threat.

“Time was of the essence,” Schermeyer said. “What wasn’t preserved, I took it on as my mission to make sure it was done before I go. … If we continued at the rate we were going, with the amount I had budgeted annually, this would be 10, 12 years out — they would degrade further,” she said. “I can’t predict whether a future town clerk would consider this as important as I did. Sometimes, priorities change.”

Schermeyer lobbied the Town Board to allocate the funds for the preservation project. She was enthused and grateful when officials embraced her mission.

“The town boards have been extraordinarily supportive in understanding the importance of preserving the history of the town,” said the clerk, who’s served under four town supervisors.

Green found a company called Kofile. They’re paper conservators, the largest in the nation, located in Essex, Vermont, outside of Burlington. Kofile works with more than 2,000 local governments preserving records for long-term retention.

Earlier this spring, Green drove there with precious, heavy cargo: another 20 map books.

“The back of my car was riding a little low, because of the weight of them,” Green said. She and Schermeyer estimated the books weighed some 20 pounds each, empty.

“It was important that someone we trust take them,” Schermeyer said of sending her colleague in person, instead of handing them over to a shipping agency or courier service.

The maps are all numbered and set into Mylar sleeves that hang in the map receptacle, making the best use of space. “This is, like, six books,” Green said, gesturing to hanging maps taking up just 8 to 10 inches in the receptacle.

“This is genius,” Schermeyer said. “For preservation, for space.”

“And time,” Green pointed out. She reported that someone recently visited to check old maps. One was stored in the new system, and one was still in an old map book.

Noting the time and effort it took to wrestle with the giant map book, to get it down and seek out a specific map, the visitor asked, “Why isn’t this in the Mylar, too?”

They all will be — Schermeyer expects the project to be completed by the end of the year.

“The people who come and use this, say, ‘Wow what a great improvement,’” Schermeyer said. It’s so much more efficient and effective, she said.

It took years to digitize all the maps. Schermeyer began her preservation efforts soon after she took office at the end of 2006.

Some documents in the safe date to 1639. One map dates to 1797. A copy, its original is housed in the state archives in Albany.

Once Schermeyer began digitizing maps and documents, other agencies asked her to do their maps and documents as well: “Everyone would loan us their stuff and let me keep their digital images to use internally.” She traded with other entities who didn’t have the resources, creating important relationships.

Councilman John Bouvier serves as liaison to the town clerk and Schermeyer’s Historic Division. He lauded her effort and said the town’s vault contained information that’s consequential to the town’s history, as well as information that’s just plain fascinating.

The project, he said “gives us a broad view the town and its growth. In preserving the written records, we’re preserving the history.”

Bouvier noted that when officials consider landmarking a structure, they conduct in-depth research to see if it qualifies. “You find fascinating stories of the people responsible for creating this community — this is our identity, these unbelievable stories hidden in salt boxes.”

The councilman sponsored the resolutions allowing Green to travel to Vermont in April and funding preservation efforts. Of the map restoration project, he said, “I give all the credit to Sundy. She’s driven, and she doesn’t say no. I can’t say no to her.”