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Queens Memory Launches COVID-19 History Project

Queens Memory Project 2016(Photo: Queens Public Library)

April 20, 2020 By Christian Murray

The Queens Public Library and Queens College have come together to document people’s experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic–and are calling on residents to share their stories.

Queens Memory, a community archiving program supported by the Queens Library and Queens College, has launched the COVID-19 Project that aims to create a historical record of how residents of the World’s borough lived, worked, studied and helped one another during the crisis.

Program organizers are working with Urban Archive, a non-profit tech firm, to collect the stories.
Residents are asked to contribute their stories in a variety of formats, including phone-in audio testimonies at 855-QNS-LOVE; written and photo submissions through Urban Archive; and long-form remote interviews conducted by Queens Memory staff and volunteers.

Submissions will be become part of the Queens Memory digital collections at QPL and Queens College Library.

“Queens remains the epicenter of the pandemic in New York City, with many residents working on the front lines and providing essential services to community members,” said Natalie Milbrodt, QPL’s coordinator of Metadata Services and the founding Director of the Queens Memory Project.

The project aims to reconstruct the state of mind and mood of people living through the pandemic from one day to the next.

“The heart of this project is to record and reflect on the real-time impact of life at the center of the pandemic in a city that influences the world,” said Sam Addeo, director of community and development at Urban Archive.

For more information or to participate, please click here.