Week Four: An Epic Account

Michael Gladden Jr.'s 1926 account book.

Hello, reader! To kick off this blog, I have exciting news regarding a recent addition to the Gladden Collection. On Monday, I assisted Ms. Boykin with setting up the Museum of the Apopkans’ Black History Month exhibit. Stashed within her tote bag, Ms. Boykin handed me Michael Gladden Jr.’s 1926 account book. Inconspicuously labeled “order book,” this object is definitive proof that Michael Gladden Jr. was a community safekeeper. Within this rarity of an artifact, Mr. Gladden recorded traces of every individual for whom he kept money in his store vault or in his personal State Bank of Apopka account. In addition to stacks of dates and values written in Mr. Gladden’s beautiful handwriting, the names listed in this book included Joseph Cauley, Michael Gladden Jr.’s loyal employee, and Arthur J. Willis, Apopka’s tailor, clothes presser, and cleaner. As I flipped through the delicate pages of this hundred-year-old relic, I knew that this would be the prime example and shining pinnacle of my research. Not only does it reflect Michael Gladden Jr.’s emerging importance in his community, but chiefly that he engaged in the act of conscious safekeeping from the very beginning of his career. I was excited to share this find at this week’s RICHES meeting that I attended in person. I flipped through the pages of Mr. Gladden’s account book with Dr. Lester, showing her just how contextually crucial it is to the entire Gladden Collection.

The inside of Michael Gladden Jr.'s 1926 account book, where names and financial values were listed under his personal State Bank of Apopka account.

Also amongst my belongings that day were the Gladden film negatives I shared in last week’s blog. I had hoped to digitize the images stored on it during my busy day on campus. After the RICHES meeting concluded, I worked on the Gladden Digital Archive while waiting for Geoffrey Cravero for our appointment at the CHDR lab. We soon discovered that the microfilm scanner housed by CHDR was quite difficult to operate, especially since the film negatives are not attached to a reel. Geoffrey and I learned from the CHDR team that this particular scanner had not been used in three years! Although we couldn't digitize the Gladden negatives, Geoffrey and I gained partial insight into the contents of these intriguing images. In the attached photos, you will find an image of the scanner (a ScanPro3500), a brief view of Joseph Cauley, and most excitingly, what seems to be Michael Gladden Jr. standing outside his storefront. Geoffrey plans to meet with Mike from the CHDR team to learn how to use the software associated with the microfilm scanner before next week. Hopefully, we can set our sights on another scanning session soon! 

After trying out the microfilm scanner, it was time to embark on a special tour of the new Digital Exploration Center (or DEC for short), which officially opens this Monday! Dr. Daniel Fandino, the DEC Head Librarian, led us through various areas of this new library locale, including podcast and photogrammetry studios. The crown jewel of the DEC is the immersion studio, fitted with nine high-quality projectors that have the ability to display videos, panoramas, video game scenery, and even the intricate details of individual objects. Speaking of object scans, I was able to discuss the Gladden negatives with Dr. Fandino after our DEC tour, hoping that he would have some recommendations to properly preserve these images. He very kindly offered to set up an appointment with UCF’s Digital Scholarship Department and me to discuss digitization options for this remarkable artifact. Fingers crossed that something will be arranged soon! I will let you know what comes of it next week. See you next time, reader!