CURATING ORAL HISTORIES
SURVEY
Type of institution
___Academic
___Government
__x_Historical ociety
__x_Museum
___Religious
___For Profit
___Public library/ school
__x_Non-Profit
___Other
Institutional information
Name of library/archive/project: Cherokee National Archives
Parent Institution (if applicable): Cherokee National Historical Society
Contact person Tom Mooney
Title: Archivist
Phone: 918-456-6007 x22
Email: [log in to unmask]
Location (city): Tahlequah, Oklahoma 74465
Oral history collection
Describe briefly your oral history collection:
Number of interviews: Approximately 200
Time span and geographic scope: 1930 - 1985
Subjects collected: Cherokee history, memories, folklore, historical footnotes
How do you acquire oral histories?
___x__ Donation __x___ Produced in-house __x_Purchased ____Other (explain)
Comments on acquisition of oral histories: We could have used a more consistent effort in collecting histories and regrettably are still not very active in this area.
Preservation
In what formats do you archive oral histories?
____ Paper transcript
___x_ Analog audio: (specify) reel-to-reel, audiocassette, microcassette:
_____ Digital audio: (specify) DAT, CD, minidisc, datafile, other
This September we will begin digitalization, as I understand the project, all will be on CD
_____Visual: (specify) analog video, digital video, DVD, other
Does your archive have a schedule for format refreshment or transfer? Describe. We will begin a 5 year cycle
Are any of your oral histories endangered due to media deterioration? Describe.
Most oral histories are on reel-to-reel and we expect their quality to be good, however they have not been played recently. There are some others on cassette that were poorly made and may be in greater danger. Others are c. 1963 on cheap 3" reels that involve Cherokee legends and are in extremely poor condition and may already be lost.
What are the biggest challenges dealing with multiple formats for oral histories?
Access
How do you catalog oral histories?
_____ Don't catalog
__x___ Finding aid -- FileMaker Pro database
_____ Full MARC cataloging
_____ Brief MARC cataloging
_____ Catalog using metadata, e.g. EAD, TEI (specify):
Where do your catalog records live?
_____ OCLC or RLIN
_____ Other aggregated database or digital library (specify)
_____ Institution's online catalog
_____ Institution's website
_____ Catalog records not available online
___x__ Other (describe): computer file only, we will produce finding aid this fall
Online Access
Are your oral histories online in any form? Describe. No
If not, are you considering publishing your oral histories on the internet in any form? No, perhaps the finding aid may go on-line
If yes to either of these questions, may I contact you for more details?
Looking to the future (Please use reverse side for answers)
What are some of the greatest challenges for archiving oral histories today? Media deterioration
What are some of the greatest possibilities for preserving and providing access to oral histories in the 21st century? I believe the Internet has opened a lot of new doors as we now have the technology to place archival records on-line, such as the LOC's American Memories site.
What is the greatest need for oral history archivists (e.g. training, staff, money, technology?)
Money is always nice, but getting the time to care for records, place them on-line, and migrate them to newer technologies is also a problem
Is communication between oral historians and archivists sufficient? What steps could be taken to enhance understanding?
Is the processing of oral histories sufficiently funded in your institution? No
What is the greatest challenge in your daily handling of oral histories? We really have not provided the care in the past they deserve. Part of this is staff time being spread too thin and letting other projects continually be placed ahead of preservation efforts.
May I contact you for a followup survey? Yes
Samples of your written documentation (donor forms, guidelines for cataloging, grant proposals) would be welcome
Return survey by email attachment or US post to :
Nancy MacKay [log in to unmask]
2115 Damuth Street
Oakland, CA94602
----- Original Message -----
From: Richard Fields
To: [log in to unmask]
Sent: Tuesday, June 01, 2004 8:12 AM
Subject: Fwd: Curating oral histories - Survey
see attached
Rick
Nancy MacMay <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
Date: Fri, 28 May 2004 19:17:42 -0400
From: Nancy MacMay
Subject: Curating oral histories - Survey
To: [log in to unmask]
Hello everyone,
I am collecting some data for a research project on "the state
of curating oral histories." If you, or someone in your institution
works with the cataloging, processing or archiving oral histories, I
would be ever so grateful if you could complete my survey posted at
http://people.mills.edu/mackay/Survey1.doc. It should take about 20
minutes, and you can return it by email attachment or US mail.
DEADLINE: June 15, 2004
I am a librarian (cataloger), a practicing oral historian and
currently am the archivist and coordinator for the oral history
program at Mills College. As I move from one role to another in my
daily work, I'm keenly aware of the gaps in information between oral
historians and archivists, and I believe the quality of archived oral
histories is compromised.
I hope to identify the major challenges in processing archival
quality oral histories, e.g. staffing, technology, funding,
communication, record keeping, preservation, etc., and to encourage
best practices guidelines for processing oral histories.
Thank you in advance for your time. If you have any questions,
please contact me at [log in to unmask] with the subject line:
Oral history survey
Nancy MacKay
Head, Technical Services and Collection Development
Coordinator, Oakland Living History Program
Mills College
Oakland, California
[log in to unmask]
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Important Subscriber Information:
The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).
If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).
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