American Archivist (Vol. 62, No.1
/ Spring 1999)
Abstracts and Author Bios
Information
Culture and the Archival Record
Steven
Lubar
Abstract
New technologies
pose new challenges for archivists not only because they change the material
nature of archives, but also because they change ideas about information
and its place in our culture. This article uses contemporary cultural
theory to consider the intersections of information, culture, and technology
in archives. It argues that context is essential to understanding archives
and that archives are creators and reinforcers of power and authority.
Finally, it considers two archetypal archives, assemblages of clay tokens
in the ancient Near East, and today's World Wide Web, to suggest the importance
of considering archives' connectivity and context in order to understand
their use and power.
Author
Bio
Steven
Lubar is chair of the Division of the History of Technology at the Smithsonian
Institution's National Museum of American History. He is the author of
InfoCulture: The Smithsonian Book of Information Age Inventions,
and many articles on the history of technology, materials culture, and
public history.
The
Archival Image in Fiction: An Analysis and Annotated Bibliography
Arlene
Schmuland
Abstract
The news
media, television, and nonfiction and fiction books all disseminate and
perpetuate many stereotypes of the archival profession. This article
is
a study of the images of archives and archivists based on a reading of
128 novels. It is divided into four parts: how authors define the term "archives," perceptions
of the archivists themselves, the issues of dust and the images of
death regularly associated with archives, and the importance
of archives and archival holdings. The images of archives and archival
work presented in these books are discussed in the context of archivists'
long-standing concern about their professional image.
Author
Bio
Arlene
Schmuland is patron services archivist at the Utah State Archives. From
1994 to 1998 she worked as court archivist at the Bonneville County Court
Archives in Idaho Falls, Idaho. She earned a bachelor's degree in history
from Idaho State University in 1990 and a master's in history with a concentration
in archives and records management from Western Washington University
in 1997.
"Green" Archivism: The Archival Response
to Environmental Research
Todd
Welch
Abstract
This article
outlines the current relationship between archival materials and environmental
research using information provided by a survey of repositories. The survey
examined the use of archival sources in archives and manuscript repositories
by environmental researchers and the efforts of archival institutions
to meet the needs of such users. Results demonstrate trends in record
use among environmental users and the lack of efforts by archivists to
modify their programs to encourage and satisfy such use.
Author
Bio
Todd Welch
has been the assistant archivist in the manuscript department of the Oregon
Historical Society since 1994. He received a B.S. in history from Portland
State University in 1989 and an M.A. in history with a concentration in
archives and records management from Western Washington University in
1995.
Integrated
Archives and Records Management Programs at Professional Membership Associations:
A Case Study and a Model
Stephen C. Wagner
Abstract
Professional
membership associations present special problems for archivists because
of the highly dispersed nature of their activities (and hence recordkeeping)
and the constant turnover of actors. This paper presents a case study
and a model for addressing archives and records issues in these types
of settings, based on the conception of the archivist as a coordinator
of others' activities and not a curator of records. The strategy and tactics
employed here may also work well in an era when organizational hierarchies
are being eliminated and when electronic recordkeeping systems are becoming
dominant.
Author
Bio
Stephen
C. Wagner is the bibliographer of the History of Science Society, a project
based in the Department of Philosophy at the University of Oklahoma. Previously
he has been History of Science Librarian at the University of Oklahoma
Libraries (1995-1998) and director of Archives, Records, and Library Services
at the Oncology Nursing Society (1992-1995). He has an M.A. (history and
philosophy of science) and an M.L.S. (archives) from the University of
Pittsburgh.
Life
with Grant: Administering Manuscripts Cataloging Grant Projects
Susan
Hamburger
Abstract
Administering
manuscripts cataloging grant projects requires planning and flexibility.
The author uses three separate retrospective conversion projects for personal
papers at the Library of Virginia (formerly the Virginia State Library
and Archives), the University of Virginia, and the Virginia Historical
Society as the basis for discussing staffing, training, record quality,
workflow, and quality control. The author points out the problem areas
and the successes, and makes suggestions for future manuscripts cataloging
retrospective conversion projects.
Author
Bio
Susan Hamburger
is the manuscripts librarian in the Special Collections Department, Pattee
Library, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park. She began
her career in special collections at Florida State University. She then
served as archivist at the Virginia State Library and Archives, the University
of Virginia, and the Virginia Historical Society. She earned a master's
degree in history in 1984 and a Ph.D. in American history in 1994, both
from Florida State University.
The
Indiana University Electronic Records Project Revisited
Philip
C. Bantin
Abstract
Further
work on the Indiana University Electronic Records Project has demonstrated
the value of systems analysis in identifying the functions, subfunctions,
and individual inputs and outputs that need to be documented. In addition
to this new methodology, the project has also found its new strategy of
aligning the Archives with Internal Audit to be an effective way to participate
in information systems review and to provide a forum to present archival
considerations and concerns regarding electronic recordkeeping.
Author
Bio
Philip
C. Bantin is university archivist at Indiana University, where he has
been actively involved in the management of IU's electronic resources
as a member and co-chair of the university's Data Stewards Committee.
Before working at IU, Bantin was an assistant archivist at Marquette University,
university archivist at UCLA, and head of the Archives and Manuscripts
Department at Boston College.
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