Aalst Calls for Volunteers to Help Index 42,000 Historical City Council Reports

Aalst (Eurotoday): Aalst seeks volunteers to index over 42,000 scanned city council reports, enhancing public access to historical records. No experience is required, approximately 50 volunteers have joined the effort.

The city of Aalst has a large collection of over 42,000 scanned reports from city council and board of aldermen meetings, including records from smaller areas. These documents contain historical information about the city’s decisions and policies. To make this information more accessible, Aalst plans to put these scans online. However, they need to create a detailed index with keywords to help people easily find specific topics, events, or decisions within the reports.

How can people help Aalst index 42,000 historical city council reports?

To create the index, the city is looking for volunteers to help review the scanned reports. This effort will help develop a useful search tool for researchers, historians, and the public. It has been said that by volunteering, people can help preserve Aalst’s history and make it easier for future generations to access it. This project offers an opportunity for anyone interested in local history or government records to make a positive impact.

The city says that no experience is needed, just a passion for history, as they seek volunteers to help with documents from the 18th century in French and Dutch. Volunteers will only need to note details like the language, document type, meeting date, and agenda titles, making it easier to find specific meetings. This allows people to access reports from home without damaging the original documents. So far, about 50 volunteers have signed up to help with this work through a crowdsourcing website, choosing their hours.


Comments

One response to “Aalst Calls for Volunteers to Help Index 42,000 Historical City Council Reports”

  1. Third Moon Avatar

    Oh great, because who wouldn’t want to spend their weekends hunched over 18th-century documents, channeling their inner historian? 🤔 Just what the world needs—more volunteers indexing historical reports instead of living their lives! 🥱

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Last News

EU Commission’s Von der Leyen survives parliament confidence vote by large margin

EU Commission’s Von der Leyen survives parliament confidence vote by large margin

Brussels (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen smoothly survived a no-confidence vote in the European Parliament on Thursday. The vote was initiated mainly by far-right lawmakers accusing her and her team of eroding trust in the EU through illegal actions. The motion for censure was overwhelmingly rejected by the majority of EU lawmakers.

How did Von

Read More

King Charles ‘unwise’ to raise borders at Macron state banquet, says Reform deputy leader

King Charles ‘unwise’ to raise borders at Macron state banquet, says Reform deputy leader

During his speech at the state banquet at Windsor Castle, King Charles highlighted the many complex threats facing both countries, which come from various directions. He emphasized the importance of addressing these challenges together as allies and friends, noting that these issues transcend borders and cannot be avoided by isolation. He also addressed the issue of “irregular migration acro

Read More

Fico: I Seek Early Agreement with the European Commission on Halting Russian Gas Supply

Fico: I Seek Early Agreement with the European Commission on Halting Russian Gas Supply

Bratislava – Slovakia is continuing to withhold its support for the 18th package of anti-Russian sanctions, tying its vote to the resolution of concerns over gas prices, availability, and compensation for potential damages resulting from the halt of Russian gas supplies effective January 1, 2028. Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) expressed this stance on social media on Thursday, while also ind

Read More

EU Announces €2.3 Billion Aid for Ukraine’s Reconstruction

EU Announces €2.3 Billion Aid for Ukraine’s Reconstruction

Brussels (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – On Thursday, the European Commission revealed a 2.3 billion euro aid package for Ukraine to assist in its reconstruction following the extensive destruction caused by Russia’s full-scale invasion.

What is included in the €2.3 billion package?How much destruction has Russia caused in Ukraine?

Russia’s air strikes have seriously impacted the infrastructure

Read More

EU Illegal Crossings Decrease by 20% in First Half of 2025, Reports Frontex

EU Illegal Crossings Decrease by 20% in First Half of 2025, Reports Frontex

The Central Mediterranean route is the EU’s most active migratory path, accounting for 39 percent of all irregular arrivals, according to a press release.
This route is also perilous. The International Organization for Migration estimates about 760 people died in the Mediterranean in the first half of this year. In 2024, 2,300 lives were lost in the same area.
Frontex has around 3,000 agents, plan

Read More

Environment Ministers Tested for “Forever Chemicals”

Environment Ministers Tested for “Forever Chemicals”

In Copenhagen, EU Environment and Climate ministers, along with Environment Commissioner Jessika Roswall, participated in a blood test on Thursday to check for “forever chemicals” (PFAS), according to Danish and European officials.
PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are a group of synthetic chemicals that do not break down easily in the environment.
Research indicates that some PFAS ca

Read More

Diepenbeek: 21 Flats by Dethier to Replace Old Post Office

Diepenbeek: 21 Flats by Dethier to Replace Old Post Office

Diepenbeek (Eurotoday) – The old post office on Kerkstraat in Diepenbeek will be replaced by a green housing project with 21 apartments. Dethier plans 2 L-shaped buildings and a private garden.
As VRT News reported, the old post office on Kerkstraat in Diepenbeek, a municipality in the province of Limburg, Belgium, is being demolished. A new housing project will be built there. Officials mention

Read More

EU Considers Halting Israel Relations Amid Gaza Crisis

EU Considers Halting Israel Relations Amid Gaza Crisis

The review indicates that suspending the trade chapter of the agreement would remove trade preferences for Israeli products entering the EU, potentially passing with a qualified majority vote in the Council. A complete ban on imports from illegal West Bank settlements demands unanimity from member states, but individual nations can adopt this policy on their own.
Alternative options include exclud

Read More

EP adopted resolution on China’s raw material export restrictions at Lexmann’s request

EP adopted resolution on China’s raw material export restrictions at Lexmann’s request

Brussels/Strasbourg – The European Parliament (EP) approved a resolution on Thursday to address the EU’s economic, security, and strategic interests in the supply of critical raw materials, initiated by Slovak MEP Miriam Lexmann (EPP/KDH). She emphasized the significance of this issue for European security, as reported by TASR.
As a member of the EP Committee on International Trade (INTA),

Read More

Vought SB2U Vindicator: A Naval Aviation Legacy

Vought SB2U Vindicator: A Naval Aviation Legacy

Introduction 
If you have an interest in aviation or you enjoy studying old planes, chances are the Vought SB2U Vindicator will catch your fancy. One might wonder why we concentrate on this plane and not on more famous types of WWII aircraft, such as the 4U Corsair. That is why the Vindicator preceded the Corsair and was used in World War II, but is not very popular. It acted as a basis for subs

Read More