New features in MACRIS
Location Selection Page
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Until the entire scanning project has been completed, those towns that have been fully or partially scanned (primarily towns in the last portions of the alphabet) will be indicated in the town list with green text.
- Photographs (JPG images), scanned Inventory forms (PDF files), and National Register nominations (PDF files) can all be accessed from both the Query Results list and in a particular record's Record Details.
Results Page
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The query Results list contains three new columns: record thumbnail photos; INV icons indicating the availability of PDF format inventory files; and NR or NR/CS icons indicating the availability of PDF-format National Register nominations or Multiple Property Submission Context Statements.
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Moving the mouse over a thumbnail photo causes a larger thumbnail to appear at the top center (or bottom center) of the browser window. Dragging the mouse over the thumbnail photos in the column, allows the reader to “flip through” larger thumbnails of the photos of the displayed records. Clicking on a thumbnail photo will open a larger version of the photo. Return to the Results list by hitting the escape key, clicking the "close" link, or clicking outside of the photo box.
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An "INV" icon indicates the availability of an Inventory form in PDF format which can be viewed or downloaded with a mouse click on the icon. Please note that some PDF files can be large and take long to download.
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An "NR" icon indicates the availability of a National Register nomination in PDF format, which can be viewed or downloaded with a mouse click on the icon. National Register files are often very large and may take longer to download than most inventory forms. Records within National Register Historic Districts do not display the NR icon on the results list. The NR icon and link for the record are displayed at the bottom of the Record Detail Page for the record.
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An "NR/CS" icon indicates the availability of a scanned National Register context statement. These include Multiple Resource Areas (NRMRA), National Register Thematic Resource Areas (NRTRA), and National Register Multiple Property Submissions (NRMPS). National Register context statements are often large files. The NR/CS icon and link to the context statement are displayed at the bottom of the Record Detail Page for records that are part of the MRA, TRA, or MPS.
- Listed records for properties within National Register Historic Districts or other areas do not display the NR icon on the Results list. The NR icon and link for the record are displayed at the bottom of the Record Detail page for the record.
Record Details Page
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If there is no Inventory form for the record, but additional information is to be found in another record, a link to that record will appear in the center right of the screen. If the record is in one or more areas, the areas will be listed towards the bottom of the screen.
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As on the Results page, an INV or NR icon indicates the presence of a scanned form, and a thumbnail photo indicates the presence of a jpg file for the record. Both can be opened as described above.
New Features may not work properly in Internet Explorer 6, Firefox 2, Netscape, or other, outdated browsers.
Frequently Asked Questions - Scanned Material
- Why are there no pictures or PDF files for some towns?
Inventory files are being systematically scanned, in reverse alphabetical order by town. If there are no images or PDF files for a specific town, it is likely that your town has not yet been scanned. In addition to the systematic scanning of town Inventory forms, most Inventory forms and images provided to us in electronic form since 2006 are being added as soon as they have been entered into the MACRIS database. As a result, some towns may be partially represented by recent Inventory forms and (usually) color images.
- My town's historic center was included in the National Register of Historic Places in 1979; why can I not find the nomination in MACRIS?
Nominations have been converted from MS Word files to PDF format (supplemented by scanned photographs and maps) beginning with the most recently listed sites and working backward through the year 2000, when most files no longer survive in electronic format. Further scanning of older paper nomination files will continue and is expected to be completed about the same time as the scanning of the Inventory.
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How does the nomination available in MACRIS differ from that sent to the Washington, D.C. office of the National Register of Historic Places?
The online version of a National Register nomination in MACRIS is a reproduction of the nomination submitted to the National Park Service office in Washington, including all of the photographs and maps still retained in paper form in MHC official paper files. In most cases, it does not include the signature of the Keeper of the National Register. Any subsequent modifications made as a result of the National Register review process have also been included. Some nominations have also been redacted to protect sensitive archeological information. Any section that has been redacted carries the legend "Portions redacted."
- Why are there pictures for some properties in a town, but not for others?
Not all properties included in MACRIS are represented by individual Inventory forms. Many are included only in property lists within areas. However, in cases where a photograph exists for this property, it may have been scanned for inclusion in MACRIS, even if no form exists to be scanned. Furthermore, images from properties and districts recently added to the National Register of Historic Places are also included in MACRIS, even if the town's Inventory files have not yet been scanned.
- Why is the information provided by the Record Details Page sometimes different than the information on the scanned Inventory form?
Information on the Record Details page is the most current information available to MHC. The form itself may not be annotated with the updated information. This new information could include demolition of the property, an updated street address, revised property name(s), or newly determined date(s) of construction -- information determined after receipt of the original inventory form by MHC.
- How can I correct inaccurate or out-of-date information?
MHC depends on the work of the local historical commission in each town to submit Inventory forms or new photographs. Please submit new and updated information to both the town's historical commission (c/o Town Hall) as well as to MHC. So that the town and MHC can properly record this information, please send this information on the appropriate MHC Inventory form (available here). For further information, please write to mhc@sec.state.ma.us and include 'MACRIS-Correction' in the subject line.
- How can I find out which towns have already been completely scanned?
The most Recent Updates to the project will be listed at the end of this document (click here) or through an RSS feed [RSS ICON]
- When will the project be completed?
The conversion of MHC's Inventory of Historic Assets of the Commonwealth to digital format is a multi-year project, begun in 2008 as a result of a grant from Preserve America, a Federal program to foster a greater shared knowledge about the nation's past (for more information about Preserve America, see http://www.preserveamerica.gov/). It is anticipated that scanning will be complete for towns from Haverhill to Yarmouth during 2012.