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CRKN Transcription Project

The CRKN Transcription Project is a pilot initiative to crowdsource transcriptions for content in the Héritage collection, part of the Canadiana collections.

The Héritage collection includes 41 million pages of archival records, approximately 60% of which are handwritten. Typical Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software, used to create searchable versions of typewritten documents such as books and newspapers, cannot be used with handwritten text because handwriting varies widely in shape and style. Manual transcription of handwritten documents can be used instead to provide full-text search capability and additional metadata for digitized records.

CRKN launched the Transcription Project in June 2020, with staff from 12 participating member institutions. If your institution would like to join the project, please contact digitization@crkn.ca.

CRKN thanks its members OurDigitalWorld and Library and Archives Canada for their support in developing and launching this project.

 

Resources for Project Participants

Transcription Guidelines: Instructions and tips for how to transcribe documents using the transcription tool

Join the community Slack channel! Troubleshoot with fellow participants and share interesting finds from the Héritage collection

Demo recording of the transcription tool.

Virtual office hours: Office hours with CRKN staff are available upon request by emailing digitization@crkn.ca

External Resources: 

  • Transcription Tips (U.S. National Archives and Records Administration; also available in PDF) 
  • How to decipher unfamiliar handwriting: a short introduction to palaeography (PDF, Natural History Museum, UK)
  • Petit guide d'initiation : Paléographie (Archives départementales du Tarn, France)

Related Documents

Heritage Content

  • Canadiana Collections
    • Canadiana Héritage Project
    • Navigating the Collections
    • What’s New in the Collections
    • Canadiana Collections Metadata
    • CRKN Transcription Project
    • History of Canadiana
  • Digitization
    • Digitization Services
    • Digitization Projects
  • Preservation and Access
    • Trustworthy Digital Repository
  • Canadian National Digital Heritage Index
  • Digital Heritage Content and Preservation Listserv
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  • License Information
    • Upcoming License Renewals
      • Invoicing Schedule
      • Survey Results
    • Model License
    • CRKN Licensing Principles
    • The Banding System
    • CRKN-Negotiated APC Discounts
    • CRKN-SAGE Transformative Agreement
  • Heritage Content
    • Canadiana Collections
      • Canadiana Héritage Project
      • Navigating the Collections
      • What’s New in the Collections
      • Canadiana Collections Metadata
      • CRKN Transcription Project
      • History of Canadiana
    • Digitization
      • Digitization Services
      • Digitization Projects
    • Preservation and Access
      • Trustworthy Digital Repository
    • Canadian National Digital Heritage Index
    • Digital Heritage Content and Preservation Listserv
  • Tools and Services
    • CRKN Open Access Journals List
    • Foreign Exchange Service
    • Institutional Mobilization Toolkit
    • Journal Value Analytics
    • Unsub
    • The Big Deal Toolkit
  • Projects and Collaborations
    • Journal Usage Project
    • Érudit Partnership & Coalition Publica
    • SCOAP³
    • ORCID Canada
    • NISO Membership
    • COUNTER
    • FMD
    • CC-PLUS
    • DataCite Canada Consortium
  • Publishers
    • List of Publishers and Vendors
  • News and Events
    • News
    • Events
    • CRKN Conference
      • 2020 CRKN Virtual Conference
      • 2019 CRKN Access to Knowledge Conference, Ottawa
      • 2018 AGM, Vancouver
      • 2017 AGM, Montréal
      • May 2017 Special Meeting of the Members
  • About CRKN
    • Board of Directors
    • Members
      • Associate Membership
    • Strategic Plan
      • Strategic Plan 2019-2024
    • Committees
      • Conference Planning Committee
      • Content Strategy Committee
      • Executive Committee
      • Finance & Audit Committee
      • Preservation and Access Committee
      • Knowledge Base Entitlements Sub-Committee
      • Task Groups
    • Annual Report
    • Staff
    • Careers
    • History of CRKN
    • Ron MacDonald Service Award