The Bureau has developed an aerial photo repository. The photos have accumulated over decades, mostly through donations and some purchases for mapping projects. The photos are stored in 45 4-drawer file cabinets ; about half of the photos remain in cardboard boxes (112) in which they were shipped to us. We estimate that there are over 200,000 photos (of varying condition) in the repository. The photos are used frequently by Bureau staff to assist with geologic field mapping and other investigations, and less frequently by the public. Full inventory, reorganization, filing, and creation of indices are short- to middle-term goals. Digitizing of the indices and the photos are desirable long-term goals.
Aerial Photographs
If resources were to become available (funding and staffing), it would be desirable to: 1. Fund staffing to develop flight- line indices for the collection; 2 Purchase appropriate preservation supplies and equipment for the photos 3. Purchase appropriate storage containers for the photos; 4. Purchase high resolution/high speed scanning technology (or services) to digitize the collection and/or the indices to make access to the photos more user-friendly.
