Lithuanian Archives Project (LAP)
The Lithuanian Archives Project (LAP), a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization, is located at 5528 W. Belmont Avenue in Chicago. The facility houses a permanent museum exhibit as well as rotating exhibits related to Lithuanian diaspora history. The museum is free and open to the public. In addition, LAP provides free online access to its database, Lithuanian Diaspora Digital Archives (LDDA) to scholars, researchers and the general public. The Lithuanian Archives Project is supported by an Illinois Humanities Grant, the Kazickas Family Foundation, the Lithuanian Foundation and the Omaha Community Foundation.
The LAP museum is a not-for-profit, permanent institution that was founded to serve society. LAP engages in the research, collection, conservation, interpretation and exhibition of tangible and intangible heritage items related to the Lithuanian diaspora. LAP is open to the public and easily accessible by public transportation as well as by car. All inclusive, it fosters diversity and sustainability. Ethical and professional principles guide LAP as it works with various American and international libraries, K-12 schools, universities, museums and archives, historians, genealogists, and the general public. Engaging in a unique blend of historical preservation, museum exhibits and “cultural archaeology,” LAP offers new perspectives on the immigrant experience in Chicago within the context of our global community as well as numerous opportunities in education, enjoyment, reflection and knowledge sharing.
History
The origins of the Lithuanian Archives Project began in 2009 as an emergency effort to rescue the archives from a shuttered Lithuanian monastery on Chicago’s south side. Formally incorporated as a not-for-profit in 2012, LAP actively engages in the preservation of historically significant audiovisual recordings, documents, artwork and artifacts created by the Lithuanian diaspora. LAP is the initiative of Audra V. Adomenas, daughter of Antanas J. VanReenan-Adomenas, University of Chicago Ph.D. in intellectual history, and author of Lithuanian Diaspora: Konigsberg to Chicago (1990, 1991). A Lithuanian-language translation of the book Lithuanian Diaspora will be published in Lithuania in 2023.
Thus far, the collections at LAP now include Lithuanian diaspora materials from three continents: Omaha, Nebraska; Cleveland, Ohio; Rochester, New York; Buenos Aires, Argentina; and various cities in Australia. LAP continually receives and processes new archival collections for both digitization and inclusion in its free database as well as continues to incorporate new materials into creating rotating exhibits in its museum space located at 5528 W. Belmont Avenue, in Chicago.
About (LT)
(LAP), nauja nepelno organizacija, kuriuos tikslas išsaugoti archyvinę medžiagą, susieta su lietuvių diasporos patirtimi ne tik Čikagoje, bet ir visoje Amerikoje. LAP savanorišką organizaciją sudaro profesionalai bibliotekininkai ir archyvistai, kaip filialas jungiami su Čikagos Bibliotekininkų Magistro programą (DOMINICAN UNIVERSITY) taip pat LAP yra Čikagos Archyvistų (CHICAGO AREA ARCHIVISTS) ir MIDWEST ARCHIVES CONFERENCE narys.