Tag Archives: preservation

Empowering Our Communities Through History: Join us at the 2019 Mass History Conference

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Photograph of Lawrence, Mass., strikers.What: 2019 Mass History Conference

When: Monday, June 24, 2019 | 8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Where: Hogan Campus Center, College of Holy Cross, Worcester, Mass.

Click here for directions.

The 2019 Mass History Conference will focus on empowering our communities and organizations in preserving and telling the many stories of the towns and people of Massachusetts. Learn more about the conference here.

Staff from University Archives & Special Collections in the Healey Library at UMass Boston will be presenting as part of two sessions at the 2019 Mass History Conference:

ENGAGING COMMUNITIES WITH PARTICIPATORY RESEARCH: The 1919 Police Strike and Lawrence World War I Memory Projects
Presenters: Jessica Holden, University Archives & Special Collections, Healey Library, UMass Boston, and Marc Laplante, Lawrence WW1 Project Lawrence History Center; Moderator: Caroline Littlewood, University Archives & Special Collections, Healey Library, UMass Boston

Learn how communities are engaging residents in their local history through crowd-fueled research and innovative technology. Presenters will share their research models, training MOOC software, and other technology to help others create community-based research projects. The 1919 Boston Police Strike Project documents and preserves the stories of the more than 1,100 police officers who were involved in this highly influential labor strike which had lasting effects in the City of Boston and across the United States. Project team members will provide an overview of the history, structure, and current status of the project; speak to how they have recruited, trained, and retained volunteers; discuss challenges and successes; and examine how this project may serve as a model for other crowd-fueled local history projects. Through his passion and creativity, Marc Laplante tells the stories, and brings to life, the 35 Lawrence residents who received official recognition with a bridge, park, pool, street corner or buildings for their deaths in World War I.

Skills To Go: CRAFTING PHASE BOXES
Presenter: Meghan Bailey, University Archives & Special Collections, Healey Library, UMass Boston

Help improve access to important archival collections at your repositories. Learn to create custom enclosures, also known as phase boxes, for items in manuscript collections. This is a unique, hands-on opportunity to learn a skill and be exposed to interesting, historic materials from University Archives and Special Collections in the Joseph P. Healey Library at UMass Boston. The types of materials and resulting enclosures will vary greatly in size, age, and format. Training will be provided to participants, and no prior experience is needed. UASC will provide a limited* amount of books in need of enclosures. Instructions will be provided so you may create the enclosures at your institution.

View the full program for the Mass History Conference and register here.

2019 CONFERENCE SUPPORT AND SPONSORSHIPS

Presented by
Massachusetts History Alliance
Mass Humanities

Supported by
Massachusetts State Historical Records Advisory Board (MA SHRAB)
University of Massachusetts Amherst Program in Public History
University of Massachusetts Boston Public History and Archives Tracks
Joseph P. Healey Library at UMass Boston

Supporters: Daedalus, Inc., Museum Textiles Services, Boston Rare Maps

Supporting Members: Dorchester Historical Society, Northeast Document Conservation Services

Supporting Associates: Robert Forrant, Mike Potaski

Contributing Members: Freedom’s Way National Heritage Area, House of the Seven Gables, Waterworks Museum, Digital Commonwealth, Tsongas Industrial History Center, Massachusetts Historical Society

Friends: Epsilon Associates, Inc.; Roberts Consulting; Swift River Press: Public History & Communications by Pleun Bouricius; Lynne Zacek Bassett, Costume & Textile Historian; D.P. Autio, Ornamental Plastering and Plastering of all Types; William G. Pomery Foundation

Donors: University Products

University Archives & Special Collections in the Joseph P. Healey Library at UMass Boston collects materials related to the university’s history, as well as materials that reflect the institution’s urban mission and strong support of community service, notably in collections of records of urban planning, social welfare, social action, alternative movements, community organizations, and local history related to neighboring communities.

University Archives & Special Collections welcomes inquiries from individuals, organizations, and businesses interested in donating materials of an archival nature that that fit within our collecting policy. These include manuscripts, documents, organizational archives, collections of photographs, unique publications, and audio and video media. For more information about donating to University Archives & Special Collections, click here or email library.archives@umb.edu.

Identification and Care of Photographs Workshop offered at UMass Boston

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William A. Cowles in uniform, 1863. SC-0012 William A. Cowles papers.

Workshop is full – a waiting list has been started

Interested in learning how to identify and care for historic photographs? Join us on Saturday, November 10, 2018 from 9:00 am – 1:00 pm for a FREE workshop presented by Monique C. Fischer, Senior Photograph Conservator, Northeast Document Conservation Center.

Participants are encouraged to bring a few photographs for discussion and examination.

The workshop will be held in the Joseph P. Healey Library at the University of Massachusetts Boston. Directions to campus. Parking is available on campus at the new West Campus Garage.

Registration is required; limited to 15 participants. Register for the workshop by November 1, 2018, by emailing library.archives@umb.edu.


About this workshop

This workshop offers an introduction to the preservation of photographs, including their identification, deterioration, and care. Participants will learn how to recognize various photographic formats and study the preservation problems associated with each format type. The workshop will also discuss storage concerns and preservation priorities, including environmental guidelines and proper care and handling. Participants are encouraged to bring photographs for examination and discussion.

Schedule

9:00-9:30 am   |   Registration and Introductions

9:30-11:15 am   |   Identification of Photographic Materials

  • A system of identification
  • Hands-on practice

11:15 – 11:30 am   |   Break

11:30 am- 1:00 pm   |   “Photographic Conservation Checklist”: Storage Concerns and Preservation Priorities for Photographic Materials

  • Discussion will include environmental guidelines for the storage of photographs and proper enclosures, care, and handling

1:00 pm   |  Adjourn

Logo for National Endownment for the Humanities

Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations in this program do not necessarily express those of the National Endowment of the Humanities.

Registration is required; limited to 15 participants. Register for the workshop by November 1, 2018, by emailing library.archives@umb.edu.

This workshop has been made possible in part by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the human endeavor. Read more about this grant here.

University Archives & Special Collections in the Joseph P. Healey Library at UMass Boston collects materials related to the university’s history, as well as materials that reflect the institution’s urban mission and strong support of community service, notably in collections of records of urban planning, social welfare, social action, alternative movements, community organizations, and local history related to neighboring communities.

University Archives & Special Collections welcomes inquiries from individuals, organizations, and businesses interested in donating materials of an archival nature that that fit within our collecting policy. These include manuscripts, documents, organizational archives, collections of photographs, unique publications, and audio and video media. For more information about donating to University Archives & Special Collections, click here or email library.archives@umb.edu.

 

Notes from a Processing Archivist: Playlists from the WUMB-FM Records, 1969-2012

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WUMB Playlist (ca 1971-1972)

WUMB Playlist (ca 1971-1972). Click to view larger image.

As part of my work as the Processing Archivist in University Archives & Special Collections, I’ve been processing 175 linear feet of records and other materials related to UMass Boston’s WUMB-FM radio station. For those unfamiliar with the term, “processing” a collection means conducting research and arranging and describing collection materials in an effort to facilitate access for researchers, historians, scholars, students, and the public. This also includes stabilizing the documents for the long-term preservation of the records. To put it simply, a collection should be organized to help researchers find what they’re looking for by using what archivists call a finding aid, which is like a table of contents for a collection.

WUMB Playlist (1971-04-07). Click to view larger image.

WUMB Playlist (1971-04-07). Click to view larger image.

This may sound like a daunting task, but once I’d surveyed the collection and created a processing plan, I saw a clear view from start to finish. I started processing the WUMB collection in January and have at this point “conquered” most of the paper records. What remains to be dealt with are audio and visual recordings, as well as photographs and ephemera from the radio station. The audio and visual recordings include in-studio interviews and performances as well as recordings of WUMB’s programs. It’s been an enjoyable experience to learn how the radio station is run and sustained – from its humbler beginnings in 1968 to the present.

With this blog entry, I’d like to share some gems I found while processing the WUMB collection. The playlists from the early 1970s are fun and capture the feeling of the time period through the drawings in the margins, which include comic book characters, a talking microphone called Monty, and radio station announcers. The artist, who signed his name as Dave FitzPatrick, was likely a student working at the radio station. Students have had the opportunity to work in the radio station throughout much of its history and these drawings are an example of the energy these students brought to the station.

WUMB Playlist (1971-12-06). Click to view larger image.

WUMB Playlist (1971-12-06). Click to view larger image.

I also want to mention that many of the playlists and staff memos in the WUMB collection were created with a Ditto machine. The Ditto machine (also called a “spirit duplicator” because of the presence of alcohol in the ink)was used to print copies. The Early Office Museum describes that full process here (scroll down to “Hektograph and Spirit Duplicators”).

The solvent used in the Ditto machine makes the blue ink unstable and is a concern for archivists. The ink is sensitive to ultraviolet light and will fade over time if not properly stored. The paper itself is also acidic and will yellow and crumble over time. To prevent the loss of information on the Ditto copies, I’ve photocopied each page onto archival bond paper, which is acid-free and pH neutral. These photocopies are now in the collection as access copies while the originals have been stored in boxes away from sunlight.

Since I am not only an archivist but also an artist, you can see why I am attracted to these drawings. I hope you enjoy these images as much as I do. Please stay tuned for updates on the WUMB collection as work progresses and contact us if you are interested in exploring the WUMB collection, or if you’d just like to learn more about the holdings in University Archives & Special Collections.

University Archives & Special Collections in the Joseph P. Healey Library at UMass Boston collects materials related to the university’s history, as well as materials that reflect the institution’s urban mission and strong support of community service, notably in collections of records of urban planning, social welfare, social action, alternative movements, community organizations, and local history related to neighboring communities.

University Archives & Special Collections welcomes inquiries from individuals, organizations, and businesses interested in donating materials of an archival nature that that fit within our collecting policy. These include manuscripts, documents, organizational archives, collections of photographs, unique publications, and audio and video media. For more information about donating to University Archives & Special Collections, click here or email library.archives@umb.edu.