MIFFLINTOWN — Down in the basement of the Juniata County Library in Mifflintown, where the ceilings are low and the air is heavy, the Juniata County Historical Society has been fighting a quiet battle. It is the battle to save the county’s past before the walls — quite literally — close in around it.

For decades, volunteers have worked in that cramped space, surrounded by the stories of people who shaped Juniata County long before any of us arrived. They have cataloged, cleaned, preserved and protected. They have done everything they could with what they had.

But what they have is no longer enough.

“We’ve really been looking since the county arranged with the library and the archives to be there and not charge us rent in the late 80s,” said Bailey Imes, Juniata County Historical Society board member and co-chair of the Archives Search committee.

“The library is such a wonderful area. This was a great arrangement for us for many years, but within the last five or so years, we have had significant issues with the space and have been considering the possibility of moving since then,” Imes added.

Those leaks don’t just threaten the building and the archives. They threaten the memories stored inside it.

“We can’t display items at the archives due to a lack of space, so that limits us to only keeping items on display for three months a year at the Academy,” Imes said.

The society’s microfilm — the fragile reels that hold newspapers, records and the everyday heartbeat of Juniata County — is deteriorating. What should last 300 years is breaking down after barely 50.

“The microfilm is supposed to last 300 years, and ours is barely 50 years old and experiencing vinegar syndrome where it’s deteriorating,” Imes said. “It’s just not an ideal situation.”

Around her, shelves are full. Boxes are stacked. Every inch of space is spoken for. The society has been forced to rent a climate-controlled storage unit just to keep up with the overflow. Inside historical society members are hoping to store tax records, historical clothing, furniture, documents — pieces of the county’s identity waiting for a home that can protect them.

The neighboring Mifflin County Historical Society is housed in the Historic Courthouse, which was recently renovated, while the Perry County Historical Society resides in one of the buildings it stewards.

“We’re completely out of space,” Imes said of moving tax records and surplus books there soon. “We’ve had to rent a climate-controlled storage space.”

Even the Tuscarora Academy Museum in Mifflin, the society’s most treasured property, is full.

“They are full,” Imes said. “That would also not give us the neat and orderly archives that we want to present to anyone who comes in.”

The truth is stark: the Juniata County Historical Society is running out of room, running out of options and running out of time.

Last year, the society formed a committee to search for a new home. Imes and Shirley Covert serve as co-chairs. They have walked through buildings across the county — more than half a dozen so far — hoping one might finally be the answer.

“We’ve taken some wonderful tours. None of them have resulted in anything coming to fruition,” Imes said. “It seems like a point where there’s nowhere to turn. We’re hoping somebody has an answer.”

The society’s needs are not extravagant. They need at least three acres of land. Space for events. A decent-sized lot. A building in good condition with climate controls. A place where the past can breathe.

They have looked at former Juniata County School District buildings — Thompsontown, Mountain View — and at the old schoolhouse at Locust Run. They’ve toured the Wilson House at Juniata Valley Winery. Each had promise. None were quite right.

They have also been negotiating to take ownership of the Canal House in the Lewistown Narrows. The process is moving, but slowly. And the threat of flooding hangs over the possibility like a shadow.

“We have a lot of things we’re working on to get it there,” Imes said.

In the meantime, renting a facility may be the only way to protect the archives properly. It would give the society the space and stability it needs while it continues the search for a permanent home.

Imes checks Zillow every day. She scans auction sites. She keeps her eyes open for anything — anything — that might finally be the place where Juniata County’s history can rest safely.

“I don’t know when we’re going to find one,” she said. “We just want to make sure it’s secure and we give it the space that it deserves.”

The dream, she said, would be a historical building — something with its own story, something that could be preserved while also housing the archives.

“We would very much like to have a historical building,” Imes said. “If a historical property could be preserved and provide housing for us, that could be the perfect situation.”

The society is cautiously optimistic that grants are available to cover the purchase price or rental costs. Monthly rent isn’t in their budget, said Jessica Eaton Guyer, president of the Juniata County Historical Society. What the society needs now is the right property — or someone with the heart to help them find it.

“It’s business as usual to see if anybody has a heart to help us out,” Imes said. “That could even be giving us land, buying a property first hand. We’re hoping somebody loves local history, wants to help the historical society and has the heart to find a new archive.”

Because what they are trying to protect is more than paper and fabric and furniture. It is the story of Juniata County — the people who built it, the families who shaped it, the moments that defined it.

“We hope to find something that gives us room to grow and preserve these priceless artifacts for decades, if not for generations to come,” Imes said.

For now, the search continues. The past is waiting.

To contact the historical society, you can e-mail jchs1931@juniatacountyhistoricalsociety.org, find them on Facebook or use the contact form on their website.