Practicum Log #19: Working in Archives

This is the collection room where I worked most of my shift today. The available staff, a student worker, and I all helped Megan move archive boxes back home.

Monday, July 1, 2024 from 1:00-5:00 PM

Megan Firestone needed help in Distinctive Collections this shift. The collection had 7 pallets of archival boxes that needed moving from storage to book carts then up a set of stairs to this collection storage room. We all definitely got our weight lifting and cardio workout in for the day, but we took several breaks and traded jobs when needed. Rebuilding the collections room was like putting together a new puzzle. We stuck the archive boxes on a shelf, and Megan started putting boxes in their relatively correct area, and then we would organize the boxes in order.

I mentioned before that Megan knows the collection really well, but her extensive knowledge is truly impressive. I would say, “Who is Edward Clark?” and she would give detailed information about the former ambassador to Australia during the Johnson administration who left his collection to Southwestern and who worked for Senator Hightower, who also left his entire collection to Southwestern. She would recognize a box from the outside (mind you, these are all gray Hollinger boxes), and she would go, “Oh! I’ve missed this!” And she would stop and open the box to show us a photograph or an artifact from China that she hadn’t seen in 18 months. I said that I never had an interest in archives, but she makes it fascinating. I came home with a new appreciation for archivists and some sore muscles.

Full Schedule: l will be working 10:00-2:00 from May 28th to June 7th, M-F online. (The campus is undergoing some construction and all of the librarians are working from home.) Then, from June 10 - July 19th, I will be working 1:00-5:00 on campus at Southwestern University. I will more than likely finish by July 12th, but I'm adding a week for wiggle room. This should lead to 128 hours.