Statewide Contest to Digitize Newspapers: The Utica Sentinel is a Finalist Again! Let's Try to Win for 2018

If you recall, last year one of our local historical newspapers, The Utica Sentinel, was a finalist in the 2017 Digital Michigan Newspaper Grant Program. It came in second. Well, second is not good enough so The Sterling Heights Public Library and the Utica Historical Commission decided to try again.

Thankfully, The Utica Sentinel was chosen again as one of the five finalist for the 2018 Digital Michigan Newspaper Grant Program. Now it is up to us in the community to vote The Utica Sentinel all the way to first place for 2018!

What can the community do to show their support for The Utica Sentinel? VOTE, VOTE, VOTE!!! Vote as often as you can because every vote counts. How?

January 15 to January 20 -- Postcards (10 points each)
This is the postcard voting time period. All mailed postcards must be postmarked between January 15 and January 20.

Send any pre-made postcard with a Michigan theme to:

• Clarke Historical Library
  250 E. Preston St.
  Mt. Pleasant, MI 48859
  
• All pre-made cards must have "#DigUtica" written somewhere on the card.
• You can pickup pre-addressed Upton House cards at the library for free, but you must use your own stamp(s).

Send any hand-drawn postcard with a Michigan theme to:

• Draw anything with a Michigan theme on a blank postcard.
• All hand-drawn cards must have "#DigUtica" written somewhere on the card.
• If mailing the card yourself, send to the same address listed above.

The Sterling Heights Public Library held a Creative Coloring event on Saturday, January 13 from 2-4pm. Blank postcards were provided at the event and the library planned to send all hand-drawn cards in bulk on January 15.



January 22 to January 27 -- Tweets (1 point each)
This is the tweeting on Twitter voting time period. Any tweet including the hashtag #DigUtica between January 22 and January 27 adds one point to support digitizing The Utica Sentinel.

• Tweet anything with the hashtag "#DigUtica" between January 22 and January 27
• The content of the tweet does not matter, as long as the message is unique and includes the hashtag.
• Tweet as many times as you wish.

Don't have a Twitter account? It is easy to set one up. Don't have a smart phone? That is okay you can tweet from your computer from the Twitter website. The Macomb County Genealogy Group has put together a How to Twitter Vote handout that explains how to setup an account and a summary of the contest. There are also copies of this handout in the Mount Clemens Public Library's Local History and Genealogy Room.

#DigUtica

See you soon at Mt. Clemens Public Library!
LE