Rescue Your Heritage is a community scan-and-share event hosted by Sevier County Archives and Heritage Services (SCAHS) with the help of FamilySearch Center volunteers and Kindex/GlyphForge staff.

Bring photographs, albums, genealogy records, family histories, letters, journals, yearbooks, scrapbooks, documents, and other materials that help tell the story of you, your family, your ancestors, or your community. We will talk with you about your materials, gather important information about them, and create high-quality digital copies while the original materials remain yours.

With your permission, selected digital copies may also become part of the Sevier County Heritage Rescue online Collection, helping preserve our community's history for future generations.

The photographs and records kept in our homes often contain pieces of community history that cannot be found anywhere else.

Digitizing your materials creates another copy that can help protect the information they contain from loss, damage, or deterioration. By choosing to share digital copies with SCAHS, you can also help build a richer and more complete record of the people, families, places, businesses, organizations, traditions, and everyday experiences that have shaped Sevier County. 

You keep your original materials and can share them with your family and future generations.

Bring materials that help tell your family's or community's story. These may include:

• Family histories and genealogy records
• Pedigree charts and family group sheets
• Yearbooks
• Letters and correspondence
• Journals and diaries
• Photographs and photo albums
• Programs, announcements, and other paper memorabilia if it has names of people.
• Other historical records or flat items

Materials do not have to be extremely old to be historically important. Today's photographs and records are tomorrow's history.

As a general guideline, please select approximately 6–10 individual items that are especially meaningful or historically valuable.

However, some materials—such as photograph albums, scrapbooks, journals, genealogy books, and yearbooks—contain many pages and may need to be evaluated differently. Bring the materials you would most like to preserve, and our team can help determine what can reasonably be digitized during the event.

Our goal is to give everyone's materials the care and attention they deserve. We also hope to hold additional Rescue Your Heritage events in North Sevier, Central Sevier, and South Sevier communities.

Not necessarily. This event is being held in the North Sevier area as the first Rescue Your Heritage event, but family histories rarely stay within city or county boundaries.

We are especially interested in materials that document the people, families, communities, places, organizations, businesses, events, and traditions connected to Sevier County and the surrounding area.

If you aren't sure whether something is appropriate, bring it and talk with us.

When you arrive, a staff member will meet with you to review your materials and carefully place them in a box designated solely for your items.

Assistants will gather information about each item that helps explain your records to future viewers. We may ask questions such as:

Who is pictured or mentioned? When was this created? Where was it created? Who created it? What event does it document? Why is it important to your family or community?

This information is extremely valuable. A photograph becomes much more meaningful to future generations when we know the names, places, dates, and stories behind it.

Your materials will then be prepared for digitization and carefully tracked until they are returned to you. We carefully place your items in a box specific to your items with  information. Only your items stay in your designated box durning the whole process  other than being scanned by your boxes dedicated scanning staff. 

We will also have you sign a form stating that you give us permission to archive a digital copy of these records for future generations and share them publicly on our archive website.

Please allow time during drop off or pre-fill out our Heritage Rescue Record Submission form and Release Agreement in advance on this webpage.

Yes. Your original materials remain yours and will be returned to you.

Rescue Your Heritage is designed to create digital copies for you to keep and share with future generations. Your physical items will be returned to you.  Materials dropped off Thursday or Friday will be returned after digitization, with final record pickup scheduled for Saturday afternoon. 

When your items are completed, event staff will notify you at the contact information you provide when materials are dropped off. 

If the Saturday of the event pickup does not work for you, please speak with us about arranging another pickup time.

Materials not retrieved by Saturday at 5:00 PM of the event may be deemed abandoned. Efforts will be made to contact you. Event hosts may dispose of or retain them with no further obligation to you unless prior arrangements are made and noted on the form provided at drop off.

Your materials will be handled with professional care and kept secure throughout the entire process.

We understand that family photographs, documents, journals, scrapbooks, and other historical materials can be unique, deeply meaningful, and irreplaceable. We take the responsibility of caring for them seriously.

Your materials will be handled by experienced archives, records, and digitization professionals and trained volunteers. For many members of our team, caring for, preserving, and digitizing historical records is part of their professional work. Think of it much like having a professional digitization service scan your family records—except we are providing this service to you for FREE!

When you check in, your materials will be identified, documented, and placed together in a clearly labeled box with your name and item information. Your records will remain together and associated with you throughout the digitization process. When they are not actively being documented or scanned, they will be kept in designated secure areas with limited access.

We will use appropriate handling practices while working with your materials, and we will not knowingly make physical alterations without discussing them with you and receiving your permission. If something is especially fragile, valuable, or requires special handling, please tell us at check-in so we can determine the safest way to digitize it.

Once scanning is complete, your original materials will be returned to you along with digital copies of the items we were able to scan. FREE USB drives will be provided while supplies last; if USB drives run out, we will arrange another way for you to receive your digital files.

Your history is important to you—and while it is in our care, it is important to us too.

Some materials—particularly scrapbooks, albums, framed photographs, spiral-bound books, and other bound or mounted items—may be difficult to digitize without temporarily removing or adjusting part of the item.

We will discuss these options with you during check-in and ask for your permission before making any physical alterations to your materials. Depending on the item, we may also ask whether you would like to assist with the process yourself or are comfortable allowing a trained staff member or volunteer to do so.

With your permission, this may include:

• Removing pages or photographs from plastic sleeves for scanning and returning them as they were.
• Unframing or unmounting photographs so both sides can be digitized, then remounting them.
• Removing staples and returning the pages secured with paper clips.
• Removing spiral or comb bindings and returning the pages secured in clips or folders.
• Carefully trimming remaining spiral-bound paper edges when needed to allow pages to feed or scan properly.
• Lightly numbering pages in pencil when necessary to maintain their original order during digitization.

You decide what you are comfortable allowing. If you prefer that an item not be altered, please let us know. We can discuss other digitization options or determine what can safely be scanned without making changes.

If an item is especially fragile, valuable, or requires special handling, please let us know when you check in so we can evaluate the safest way to proceed.

Yes! You will receive digital copies of the materials we scan for you.

Participants will receive their digital copies on a FREE USB drive, while supplies last. If USB drives run out during the event, don't worry—you will still receive your digital files. We will work with you to provide your scans through another digital delivery method.

Your digital copies are yours to keep, preserve, duplicate, share with family, and store in another safe location for future generations.

Only materials shared under the event's Handling, Digitization and Use Agreement may be considered for inclusion. Not everything scanned will necessarily be published online. SCAHS and participating organizations may review materials for appropriateness, historical value, privacy, copyright, and other considerations before making them publicly accessible.

The purpose of this event is to preserve and make accessible historical materials that document Sevier County's people, history, and communities.

No. The purpose of the Rescue Your Heritage scan-and-share event is to allow you to keep your originals while helping preserve their historical information through digitization and return of your items.

If you have original historical materials that you are interested in permanently donating to Sevier County Archives and Heritage Services, we would be happy to talk with you separately about whether they are appropriate for the archives.

A permanent archival donation is a different process from participating in Rescue Your Heritage Event.

Bring it anyway.

Even partial information can be valuable. You may recognize a location, family name, approximate decade, event, school, business, or other clue. In some cases, sharing an unidentified photograph may even help other community members recognize people or places.

You don't need to know everything about an item for it to be worth preserving.

Please talk with us at the event. Digital photographs and born-digital records can also be historically valuable, but they may require a different process than materials being scanned at the event.

Our team can help determine the best way to preserve or share them.

The equipment and process used at the event are best suited for photographs, documents, albums, books, and other materials that can be safely digitized.

Some framed, oversized, fragile, or three-dimensional objects may require a different digitization method. Please do not remove a fragile or valuable item from its frame just for this event. Bring the item or a photograph of it and speak with our team about possible options.

Yes, but please tell us about their condition when you check in.

Some fragile materials may not be safe to scan using the equipment available at the event. Event staff can evaluate the item and discuss whether it can be safely digitized or suggest another approach.

Preserving the original is more important than getting a scan.

Please avoid bringing materials that you do not own or do not have permission to share.

You should also carefully consider materials containing sensitive personal information, information about living individuals, confidential records, or materials that you would not be comfortable potentially sharing with others.

Do not submit hazardous, flammable, perishable, or illegal materials. Recipients may refuse or return any submission at their discretion.

If you are unsure about an item, bring it to the event and talk with SCAHS and event staff before deciding whether to have it digitized or shared.

No. Rescue Your Heritage is a free community event.

Scanning services and USB drives are being provided through the support of SCAHS and participating partner organizations (see our sponsors section). Services and USB drives are subject to availability, and event partners may limit or decline materials that cannot be safely or appropriately digitized or are inappropriate. 

Scheduling a drop-off time is encouraged, but not required. You are welcome to bring your materials during the designated drop-off hours on Thursday, September 17 or Friday, September 18, even if you have not scheduled in advance.

Scheduling a time helps us plan for your visit, space out arrivals, and make the check-in process easier. It also allows our team to spend time with you gathering important names, dates, places, and stories connected to your materials.

We also encourage you to bring your materials as early in the event as possible. Earlier drop-off gives our team more time to review, document, and digitize your materials and may increase the number of items we are able to scan. The amount we can digitize will depend on event participation, the types and quantity of materials submitted, available equipment, and the time required to safely scan each item.

Schedule a drop-off time if you can—but don't let not having an appointment stop you from participating. Walk-ins are welcome!

Everyone is welcome!

Rescue Your Heritage is open to people of all backgrounds, cultures, faiths, and traditions. You do not need to be a historian or genealogist to participate—if you have photographs, records, or stories that help document Sevier County's people and communities, we want to hear from you. If you don't have records please come out visit our booths and enjoy free lunch and learn.

While this event focuses on the North Sevier area, residents from anywhere in Sevier County and elseware are welcome to participate. We also plan to bring future Rescue Your Heritage events to other communities throughout the county.

Live outside Sevier County? If you have family photographs, documents, or other historical materials connected to Sevier County, its communities, or its people, you are welcome to participate and share them with us or join in the event on Saturday. 

Every family and every community has a story worth preserving.

Absolutely!

Rescue Your Heritage is about more than scanning records. Everyone is invited to participate in Saturday's learning stations, Lunch & Learn activities, local history presentations, and opportunities to discover ways to preserve and share family and community history.

You don't have to bring historical materials to take part.

Absolutely! We would love to have you involved.

Do you—or someone you know—have great local stories, memories, or historical knowledge to share? We are looking for community members who are willing to tell local stories, share memories, or help others discover the history of our area during the event.

We also welcome volunteers who would like to assist with event activities and help us gather, preserve, and share our community's history.

If you are interested in participating as a storyteller or volunteer, please contact us as soon as possible so we can coordinate with you before the event. Fill out this form or contact us using the information on this page. 

https://www.seviercountyhistoryhub.org/contact

You don't have to be a historian—just bring your knowledge, memories, stories, and enthusiasm for our local heritage!

We hope so!

The North Sevier event is part of a larger effort to help families and communities throughout Sevier County preserve the historical materials that are still held in homes and private collections.

We hope to bring future Rescue Your Heritage events to other areas of Sevier County.