History Beyond the Institution: Digital Preservation, Crowdsourcing, and the Future of AI in the Manumission Project
Stephen “Andy” Langeland completed his Bachelor of Arts in History and Political Science as well as his Master of Arts in Public Policy. He is currently pursuing a PhD in Public Policy as a research fellow at Liberty University. For the past three years, Andy’s research focus has been centered on the manumission (voluntary emancipation) of slaves in Antebellum Virginia, often through a will or transfer of land. After successfully publishing research on manumissions in Campbell County, Bedford County, and Lynchburg, Andy officially began locating, compiling, and publishing the primary source deeds and wills detailing this occurrence. As a result of this ongoing project, he has now built an online database of over 3,500 documents detailing the freedom of thousands of individuals across twenty-five Virginia counties.
The webinar is on September 3, 2026 at 12:30 PM EDT, 11:30 AM CDT, and 9:30 AM PDT. Signing up will send you an invitation with the details and a follow up with the recording.
Your First Crowdsourcing Project
Join Ben and Sara Brumfield of FromThePage as they step you through your first crowdsourcing project. The session covers selecting material, finding volunteers, developing transcription conventions, keeping volunteers engaged, and what to do with your transcriptions once you're done.
The webinar is on September 24, 2026 at 12:00 PM EDT, 11:00 AM CDT, and 9:00 AM PDT. Signing up will send you an invitation with the details and a follow up with the recording.