Coming in 2027, York County digital records | County Report

York County Records Management Specialist Andrew O’Neill has been preparing some of the county’s historical records that are expected to go online for public viewing in the spring or summer of 2027. While the original documents will be preserved and remain with the county, people will be able to access scans of the documents and a summary of each online. (Courtesy of York County Government)

In May 1835, Ivory R. Hatch, who lived in the town of Wells, was unhappy with the result of an interaction with the town concerning a portion of his land. Wells selectmen had undertaken to lay out a road, an important decision at a time when there weren’t many roads.

The new road, to be 3 rods, or 49.5 feet wide, was to be built on several portions of privately held land, including 72 rods, or 1,188 feet, of Hatch’s property.

“Aggrieved” with the amount of offered compensation, according to historical documents, Hatch hired attorney J. Dane and took the next step, appealing to the York County Commissioners for relief.

The matter is outlined in the May 1835 minutes of York County Commissioners Court. It does not address the amount Hatch was originally offered, nor does the commissioners’ decision come in the May session.

Next year, however, people should be able to find out what happened in this matter, and many, many others. Soon, York County Commissioners’ long-held desire to provide more information to the public about the rich history of York County and its people will come to fruition.

In the spring or summer of 2027, people with an interest in what took place in York County as it relates to the county government will be able to read about it online. And the York County Commissioners meeting accounts are expected to be just the beginning. York County was founded in 1636, and while some records are currently held at the Maine State Archives, there are thousands and thousands of documents in Alfred. The current estimate of York County Commissioners records alone is 300,000 to 500,000 documents, said York County Records Management Specialist Andrew O’Neill.

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Back in 2022, York County Commissioners took steps to have the old county records examined, contracting with Lilly Archival of Blue Hill to take a preliminary look at the material.

“What is remarkable is the continuous series of records, between what you have in Alfred on the shelves, and the state archives,” Lilly Archival owner Paige Lilly told York County Commissioners in a report following her 2022 review of historical documents. “Overall, the preservation status of the physical materials is very sound.”

On Aug. 5, the five-member commissioner’s board approved a contract with Just Appraised Inc., a California-based company that will use AI to read scans of the documents and provide an overview of what each of them contain. People will be able to access the material online, via a link on the York County Government website. They’ll see a scan of the document itself, and a summary.

O’Neill said Just Appraised Inc. has estimated that the AI programming they use currently results in 80% to 85% accuracy and may hit 90% with the county’s records.

Before Just Appraised Inc. can work its magic, the documents must be prepared, and it is a delicate, careful process.

The handwritten documents were tri-folded, at some point in their long history, placed in bundles and then into small metal storage containers. Many are very fragile, the ink has faded, and the handwriting can be difficult to read.

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To ready them, O’Neill carefully unfolds the documents page by page, humidifies them, flattens the pages, and then scans them. O’Neill estimated he can prepare up to about 300 a day. The scans will be sent in batches to Just Appraised Inc. The physical documents remain with the County of York and will be preserved.

Since he began working for the county a couple of years ago, O’Neill has deciphered more than 2,500 documents, along with tending to other aspects of his multifaceted job, but it can be slow going. When the prospect that the documents could be digitized and contents deciphered through the AI process emerged, he and other county officials gave it thorough study and careful thought.

Commissioners first discussed the project following a presentation by O’Neill in May.

“This is really fascinating, and it makes history come alive,” said Commissioner Justin Chenette.

“It looks like a good plan,” said Commissioner Richard Clark.

“There’s a long way to go, but we are excited about the prospect,” said O’Neill. He said the result should be very user friendly.

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The contract, about $88,000 in the first year, and about $454,000 total over five years, provides for the online preservation of about 45,000 fragile documents annually.

“We have the funding set aside, and there is absolutely zero tax impact,” County Manager Greg Zinser told commissioners prior to their unanimous Aug. 5 vote. York County has long has a fund dedicated to preservation efforts, funded by user fees.

As for the Hatch appeal filed in May 1835, O’Neill explained that a decision could have been rendered in the October session or the following May. In those days, the York County Commissioner’s Court met for one to three days in May, and again in October, dealing with up to 20 agenda items per session, ranging from ordering the building of roads, issuing bids for work, and issuing bonds for civil servants and the sheriff of the day.

“There were lots of road complaints,” from the public, O’Neill said.

Finally, in the mid-1800s, commissioners began taking all paper records dealing with a specific issue and filing them at once with any final action taken. And while commissioners at that time did create roads through the municipalities, the towns and cities had the authority to create town ways.

Commissioners in the early days also examined the county payroll and voted to pay workers in their October sessions and, while they no longer order that roads be built, some early tasks remain in today’s commissioners’ purview, such as approving warrants (paying the bills) and awarding bids for items ranging from vehicles for sheriff’s deputies to construction projects.

“We think it’s an exciting opportunity to put the records out to the public,” said Zinser.

Tammy Wells is media specialist for York County Government.

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