Smithtown librarians Cathy Ball and Caren Zatyk shared the library's rich collection of local history housed in the vault of the Long Island Room in the Smithtown Branch of the library district.
The collection contains donations from various local benefactors like Richard Handley and the Smith family and dates back centuries. There are over 750 maps, 8000 books and hundreds of other materials stored in a climate-controlled area of the basement vault.
Ball and Zatyk have organized a lecture series on the contents of the collection, help run an ongoing oral history project and regularly host many researchers and children's groups.
"We made outreach our mission in the mid 2000's," Cathy Ball said. "We wanted to educate people about the Long Island history that was right under their feet and in this vault."
During the Smithtown Branch library renovation project, the items will be sent to special storage facilities.
