When the Westport Island History Committee started the project to preserve and store archival materials, the members didn’t know that construction products would be involved along with their efforts.

Yet that’s exactly what happened when Mary Coventry of Westport, who is History Committee co-chair, and her sister Kathy Tibbetts of Southport offered up a roll of Tyvec®  for the project.

Focused on preserving the island’s history, the Committee is acquiring, cataloging and storing archival materials from Westport’s past. In tandem with the acquisition work, last fall the Committee applied for and received a grant from the Maine State Archives which helped to fund their efforts to make sure that preservation of the materials is done properly.

Gaye Wagner, co-chair of the History Committee, and also Westport’s Town Clerk & Registrar of Voters, briefed the Selectmen at their meeting on Monday, March 9. Wooden shelving is not recommended for storage of historical documents because the wood can emit acidic gases that can hasten deterioration. The Tyvec® contribution will be used to wrap wooden shelves in the Town Office so that the archival documents and other materials stored on them won’t be damaged.

Mary Coventry had received the Tyvec® from her sister, Kathy Tibbetts, for a project. When material remained on the roll, the sisters agreed that it would be a good idea to give it to the town to help in the preservation of documents.

“We look to be resourceful,” Mary explained.