Archival Science Commons^™

A Genealogist In Special Collections, Or Schizophrenia In Wonderland, Lynne Mueller

The Primary Source

Genealogists, like all researchers, need training. Most researchers are trained by their teachers, but it is usually the archivist or librarian who has to teach the genealogist. When I teach workshops, I try to share the following four useful rules for genealogists using archives, libraries, or courthouses, especially those at a distance. Maybe the rules should be posted for all researchers, not just genealogists.

Seeing The Elephant In Ann Arbor, James G. Hollandsworth Jr.

The Primary Source

During the nineteenth century "seeing the elephant" meant doing something that was out of the ordinary. Today, we might refer to the same occurrence as "having peak experience." Whatever the case, I like the elephant metaphor because it captures the excitement I felt last May when I visited the William L. Clements Library in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Archaeologists And The Archival Record, Evan Peacock

The Primary Source

Archaeologists study the material record, bits of things that have been either intentionally or unintentionally modified by human beings to become artifacts. In a word, stuff. Practitioners are expected to become familiar with a vast range of stuff and the characteristics thereof: from the flowing ripple marks left on a fragment of stone after it has been hammered off of a larger piece to produce a flake, to the peculiar, stretched cross-section that indicates a square nail has been machine-cut rather than hand-forged. One particularly important subset of stuff is the archival record which, besides consisting itself of artifacts of …

Entire Issue Volume 22, Number 1

The Primary Source

Complete issue of Vol. 22, No. 1 of The Primary Source.

Accessions: 1999-2000

The Primary Source

Reports of new accessions during the years 1999-2000.

Preservin' The South

The Primary Source

Updates on new preservation research and developments.

Reports

The Primary Source

Reports from conferences and other events.

Spotlight On Mississippi Archives

The Primary Source

Spotlight on the Delta State University Archives, Capps Archives and Museum Building.

Congressional Papers In Mississippi Repositories, Michael B. Ballard, John Sobotka, Bobs Tusa, Sandra Boyd

The Primary Source

Historians and other researchers have begun to recognize over the last half century or so that the papers of United States senators and representatives are a treasure of information on many aspects of American life and on America's position on the world stage. These collections contain valuable data on cross-sections of the human experience, shedding light at once on political, social, familial, economic, governmental (all levels), scientific, military, racial and ethnic, environmental, and recreational developments and/or individuals involved in those various areas. Archivists face an enormous challenge in preserving and processing these collections, and making guides available that reflect the …

Entire Issue Volume 21, Number 2

The Primary Source

Complete issue of Vol. 21, No. 2 of The Primary Source.

Web In Progress

The Primary Source

Websites relating to archival collections and archival societies.

Accessions: 1998-1999

The Primary Source

Discussion of new accessions from 1998 and 1999.

Preservin' The South

The Primary Source

Updates on new research and developments in preservation.

Reports

The Primary Source

Updates from conferences, the Mississippi Legislature, and institutions from around the state.

Spotlight On Mississippi Archives

The Primary Source

Spotlight on the Billups Garth Archives at the Columbus Public Library.

Mississippi Department Of Archives And History Local Government Records Office Update, Bill Hanna

The Primary Source

During the past two years, the Local Government Records Office has focused on the development of records retention schedules for counties and municipalities, and assisting local governments in developing records inventories of extant records.

Timber Related Source Materials About Mississippi's Piney Woods: An Archival Survey Of The Mccain Library And Archives At The University Of Southern Mississippi, Reagan Grimsley

The Primary Source

Few natural resources impacted the lives of Mississippians to the degree which timber has. In particular, the southeastern and south central regions of the state received the label "piney woods" because the dominant features of the region consisted of longleaf, shortleaf, loblolly, and slash pines. Early Mississippians might have labeled other regions of the state according to the soil content, but the towering conifers which proliferated from the Gulf Coast northward to Jackson, and westward to near Natchez, seemed the main economic resource by which to label the area. The purpose of this article is to detail briefly why timber …

The Vicksburg National Military Park Archives, Michael B. Ballard

The Primary Source

Report of working with archival collections at the Vicksburg National Military Park.

Entire Issue Volume 21, Number 1

The Primary Source

Complete issue of Vol. 21, No. 1 of The Primary Source.

Accessions: 1998-1999

The Primary Source

New accessions during 1998 and 1999.

Web In Progress

The Primary Source

Websites relating to archival collections and archival societies.

Spotlight On Mississippi Archives

The Primary Source

Spotlight on the Henry T. Sampson Library Special Collection/Archives at Jackson State University.

Here They Come Again! My Two "Archival Encounters" With Records Of The Mississippi Sovereignty Commission, Sandra Boyd

The Primary Source

Little did I realize in the 1960s and 1970s, when reports of the Sovereignty Commission activities were in the news, that I would be involved with the Commission records in two different institutions. The "encounters" have been different, representing two ends of the spectrum in archival work today, but they have been interesting and challenging.

Processing The Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission Records, Sarah Rowe-Sims, David Pilcher

The Primary Source

In a state whose historical image is inextricably linked with racism, the Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission is surely one of its most sinister manifestations. In existence from 1956 to 1977, this state agency spied on civil rights activists, acted as a clearing-house for information on civil rights legislation from around the nation, funneled money to prosegregation organizations, and disseminated right-wing propaganda. Ironically, although its loudest proponents championed themselves as on a crusade against the insidious "red menace," the Commission was the embodiment of "Big Brother." Approximately 132,000 pages of remaining agency records document the Commission's dubious quest. Included in these …

State Sovereignty Commission Materials In The Paul B. Johnson Family Papers In The Archives Of The University Of Southern Mississippi, Bobs M. Tusa

The Primary Source

As Lieutenant Governor and Governor of the state, Paul B. Johnson received copies of regular reports prepared by the director of the Sovereignty Commission. These reports comprise nine boxes of the Paul B. Johnson Family Papers and cover the period from 1964 to 1968. The reports were clearly identified but scattered throughout the Johnson Family Papers in no order. There is much overlap between materials in the Sovereignty Commission series and those in the Highway Patrol series, since the two organizations worked together to monitor Civil Rights activities in the state from 1960 to 1968.

The collection number is M …

Entire Issue Volume 20, Numbers 1-4

The Primary Source

Complete issue of Vol. 20, Nos. 1-4 of The Primary Source.

Entire Issue Volume 19, Numbers 1-4

The Primary Source

Complete issue of Vol. 19, Nos. 1-4 of The Primary Source.

Entire Issue Volume 18, Numbers 1-4

The Primary Source

Complete issue of Vol. 18, Nos. 1-4 of The Primary Source

Entire Issue Volume 16, Number 2-4

The Primary Source

Complete issue of Vol. 16, Nos. 2-4 of The Primary Source.

Entire Issue Volume 16, Number 1

The Primary Source

Complete issue of Vol. 16, No. 1 of The Primary Source.