Preserving Local Writers, Genealogy, Photographs, Newspapers, and Related Materials

Smallwood (How To Thrive as a Solo Librarian) and Williams (Highland County District Library; Librarians as Community Partners) present writings created specifically for this volume, addressing the preservation issues that “custodians of history” face in local communities. From traditional methods of paper and photographic conservation to the burgeoning field of digital preservation, the 33 contributors provide a thorough manual for those just starting in the discipline and for professionals wanting to branch out into a different area. The volume focuses on important concerns like preserving collections on stringent budgets and how to best promote them once acquired. Some pieces delve into the specifics of successful preservation projects, with personal observations, retrospective comments, and lessons learned. Especially poignant is Alexia Hudson’s essay on the Emily Davis Preservation Project, which digitized the journals of a free black woman writing during the Civil War. Each author’s piece has its own style and methodology, which results in some inconsistencies overall regarding bibliographic references and presence or absence of source notes. This will be detrimental to readers. VERDICT This collection of practical how-to essays, complete with charts, diagrams, sample proposal letters, policies, and best practices, is a must-have tool for historical societies, museums, libraries, and archivists. * Library Journal *
For librarians who aren’t sure how to tackle the photographs, scrapbooks, oral histories, and other materials tied to their community’s history, editors Smallwood (The Frugal Librarian, 2011) and Williams have compiled a crash course in evaluating and preserving local-history resources. In this anthology, 33 librarian and archivist contributors share their experiences in articles covering topics from low-budget book repair to large-scale newspaper digitization. With some overlap, they discuss deciding what to preserve; caring for fragile materials; scanning, organizing, and indexing collections; and storing and migrating digital files. Also considered are legal issues related to privacy and copyright and crafting partnerships with genealogical societies. Specific case studies include preparing newspaper and obituary indexes and digitizing nineteenth-century diaries. Written for the librarian and the layperson, most of the book’s articles list further resources, and many provide sample policies, permissions, or partnership agreements. A useful resource for libraries or groups engaged in preserving and promoting local history. Public libraries with active community local-history groups may want to consider a circulating copy. * Booklist *
Edited by a former public library systems administrator and consultant and former school, academic and special librarian, along with the branch manager and youth librarian at the Lynchburg (Ohio) Branch of the Highland County District Library, this work presents 31 chapters organized into 9 sections. Whether one is interested in the basics of special collections of local history materials, specific materials (such as newspapers, scrapbooks, photographs, or oral histories), types of services and sources (such as local history and digital), or preservation there is a chapter of use for any type of collection. The writings include case studies of specific situations and more general topics, such as affiliation agreements, organizing and indexing photograph collections, copyright, and indexing local newspapers. Students of public history, archives, and preservation will all benefit from this knowledge, as will practicing archivists and preservationists as well as librarians working with special collections of nonprint materials used for genealogy such as photographs, newspapers, and related materials. The 33 contributors from around the world, including Nigeria and Canada, bring experience from academic, public, and special libraries, and offer their expertise and knowledge in an approachable manner for any researcher or practitioner of public history in any form that requires looking beyond the traditional print materials. * American Reference Books Annual *
Professional librarians, archivists, and preservation specialists contribute chapters addressing current challenges in preserving, managing, and digitizing local historical documents and related library materials. Practical how-to essays cover topics such as the physical preservation of materials ranging from newspapers and scrapbooks to photographs and oral histories, collection management under stringent budgets, and successful joint ventures with community groups and other organizations. * Missouri Historical Review *
The editors recruited thirty-three practicing professionals to write thirty-one independent but related chapters and added a foreward, introduction, and afterword to provide context. ... Overall, the essays are short, focused, and clearly written, the information is logically presented, the notes include both printed and electronic resources for gathering information, and the volume index is reasonable. . . . [I]t is something an archivist can suggest as a resource when helping someone without professional training who has responsibility for preserving archival and library collections. * The American Archivist *
This work serves as a readable reference work, a beginner’s guide, and a thought-provoking introduction to things to come. . . .The amount of useful advice contained in these so few words and pages is . . . staggering! * Journal of Archival Organization *
Consider it a crash course in local history preservation. If I had access to Preserving Local Writers years ago, I might have even gotten that archivist job I once applied for. -- Nancy Kalikow Maxwell, Author of Library Grant Collaboration: How Libraries Can Benefit From Other People’s Money
From glue to Google, Preserving Local Writers, Genealogy, Photographs, Newspapers, and Related Materials guides the local history librarian through development policy creation to alternative research strategies, all the way to techniques for curating the resulting collection. This anthology is a must-read not only for librarians, but also for historical society members and municipal archivists. -- Sandra Cortese, Jonathan Bourne Public Library
Preserving Local History draws from a wide range of contributors on a variety of useful subjects. Resources like this generally prove valuable to those who need a quick 'go-to' for local history ideas. -- Catherine Wilson, Executive Director, Greene County Ohio Historical Society; author of Historic Greene County
As a guidebook for library workers and the interested public, Preserving Local Writers, Genealogy, Photographs, Newspapers and Related Materials will be indispensable. Laying the necessary groundwork but going well beyond the basics, this book is a must for anyone interested in developing local or personal histories. -- Greg MacAyeal, Assistant head, Nonwestern University Music Library