The Brown University Library has been awarded an IMLS National Leadership planning grant for the purpose of collaborating with the RISD Library and the RISD Museum in the development of a new database architecture that will allow users to explore the complete extent of the design process used by the Gorham Manufacturing Company to create its hand-crafted consumer silver products.

Once completed, the new database will initially be populated with drawings, sketches, and digital objects pertaining to Gorham's Martelé line, a product that was entirely handmade and unique to the Gorham Manufacturing Company. Brown will work in conjunction with both the Museum and the Library of the Rhode Island School of Design to design the digital collection, which will draw on collections of Gorham silverware held by museums from around the world. Staff members will create a website to house archival drawings, sketches, and product descriptions based on catalogues produced by Gorham Manufacturing and held by the Brown Library. Users will be able to identify their own pieces and contribute their own descriptions of their personal holdings to the virtual catalogue, thereby leading to a fuller understanding of Gorham and, by extension, American manufacturing. Digitized images from the collection can also be searched in the Brown Digital Repository.

Funding for this project came from IMLS Planning Grant.