The Branch District Library is asking county residents for images and videos of the tornado that hit the area on March 6th, in an effort to record how the storm affected the community.
Brittany Gemmill is with the library’s Holbrook Heritage Room, which is behind the project.
She said that beyond media, the library is also looking for firsthand descriptions and accounts of the storm.
“Not only do I want the images, but I want the memories behind the images because that to me is the most important part,” Gemmill said.
"Anyone who's willing to share their memories and their stories with us, I would be so grateful. And I also would like them to know that it would be handled with the utmost respect."
For Gemmill, this request stems from firsthand experience, as the library often hears from older residents asking about a tornado that went through the county in 1965. That year, the Palm Sunday Outbreak devastated communities across the Midwest, including in Branch County.
"People will come into the heritage room and we have some photographs, but, unfortunately, the locations and the names and all of that, we just don't have that information. We just have the photographs."
She said she hopes collecting firsthand descriptions, as well as pictures and videos, from March 6th will allow later generations to better understand what happened.
“Sixty years down the road when they're talking about the storm with their grandkids, they'd be able to come to the Heritage Room or go online and be able to see these images and to learn more about the storm."
You can share your media or story about the March 6th at the Branch District Library's website.
Michael Symonds reports for WMUK through the Report for America national service program.
