By Hendri Schreuder, Sandisiwe Rululu, Tara De Wet & Thabile Manzi (UCTL Special Collections interns)

As we celebrate the 60th anniversary of UNESCO’s International Literacy Day, the global community returns to its very first theme: “Literacy for people, the planet and prosperity.” UCTL Special Collections reflects on how our libraries continue to promote these ideals in a rapidly changing world.

This reflection still carries with it the bitter-sweet emotions felt over the last five years. We are still operating out of a temporary location at Deneb House in Observatory while working tirelessly on the recovery following the devastating 2021 Jagger Library fire. Yet, out of that preservation crisis, we are finding innovative ways to connect our users with history. Special Collections has a new microfilm reader, and it has quickly become very popular with both researchers and the general public.

The SL1000 Digital Film Scanner, together with its companion SL Touch software, is newer and more advanced than the microfilm reader destroyed in the 2021 fire. As Special Collections continues its recovery journey to rebuild and restore its world-renowned collections, the new scanner is helping researchers reconnect with an important part of the past.

The microfilm reading room is where the magic happens. Here, students, staff, researchers and members of the public can explore newspapers and other publications dating back to the 1800s using modern digital scanning technology. It offers a fascinating glimpse into how people recorded, consumed and communicated information in earlier eras.

The microfilm collection includes historic publications such as the Cape Argus, Cape Times, Bantu World, The Guardian, Ilanga lase Natal, Imvo Zabantsundu and Umteteli wa Bantu (Mining Sun), among others. These publications provide an invaluable record of South Africa’s social, political and cultural history.

While the recovery of Special Collections continues, the new microfilm scanner is opening up these historical resources once again – bringing the voices, stories and perspectives of the past into the hands of today’s researchers and readers.

The microfilm preserves information, and users can access and share it digitally via the microfilm scanner. This is an interesting connection between the past and present forms of literacy, from physical newspapers to microfilm.

Connecting the past and present through microfilm

Microfilm is more than a means of preserving information; it provides a bridge between the past and the present. While the original newspapers and publications are preserved in the archive, the information they contain can be accessed, scanned and shared digitally using the microfilm scanner, allowing users to connect with historical material from almost anywhere in the world.

The microfilm collection is one of Special Collections’ significant assets, not only because of its remarkable storage capacity and longevity, but because it seamlessly brings together historical forms of literacy with contemporary digital access. A single microfilm reel can preserve information for hundreds of years, ensuring that knowledge, culture and historical records remain accessible to future generations.

For today's students, researchers and members of the public, the microfilm reading room offers an opportunity to engage directly with newspapers and other publications dating back as far as 200 years. Exploring these historical sources provides more than an insight into the past. It helps us understand the societies in which they were produced—the ideas and ideologies that shaped them, the cultures that developed around them, and the ways in which people understood and communicated the world around them.

These historical records are particularly valuable for understanding South Africa's complex past, including the ways in which the media reflected, challenged or reinforced the structures and injustices of apartheid. Engaging critically with these sources can also help us reflect on the lessons of the past in today's often polarised political and media environment.

What are people researching?

The range of requests received by Special Collections demonstrates just how valuable these resources remain. Recent examples include:

• The history of a football club in Cape Town's Southern Suburbs – an exploration of the history, development and legacy of a football club, particularly in recognition of its centenary.
• A 55th wedding anniversary: tracing an engagement announcement – locating an original engagement announcement published in the press in connection with a couple celebrating their 55th wedding anniversary.
• Black press vs white press during apartheid South Africa – examining the contrasting roles, perspectives and experiences of the Black and white press during apartheid, including how newspapers reported on politics, race, resistance and everyday life.
• Poems by Nontsizi Mgqwetho in Umteteli wa Bantu – locating poems published during the 1920s by Nontsizi Mgqwetho, in preparation for an exhibition on indigenous languages.

These requests illustrate how historical newspapers can support research into everything from family and community histories to sport, politics, literature, language and the broader social history of South Africa.

Literacy in the digital age

The Special Collections Reading Room is a space where different forms of literacy intersect. Users can discover and engage with journals, books, maps, manuscripts, pamphlets, posters, newspapers and other archival material. While the physical material remains carefully preserved within the archive, users can contact Special Collections digitally to request access to material for research and consultation. This process helps protect the physical integrity and longevity of the collections while ensuring that they remain accessible to those who need them.

The microfilm reader adds another dimension to this process. By bringing the SL1000 Digital Film Scanner into the temporary Reading Room, UCTL Special Collections is demonstrating that preserving the past is also an active way of empowering the future. Microfilm provides the durability of an archival format while the scanner enables users to interact with that material through contemporary digital technology.

There is also an important connection to information literacy. Responsible engagement with information has always depended on our ability to evaluate sources, understand context and think critically. By exploring historical newspapers and publications, we are not simply learning about South Africa's past; we are developing the curiosity, critical thinking and contextual awareness needed to navigate the information landscape of the present.

We invite UCT students, researchers and members of the community to visit us in our temporary Reading Room. Step away from the newsfeed for an hour, sit down at the Microform Reader, load a reel of history and discover just how much the past can teach us about the world today.