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Suber Archives & Special Collections

This is the homepage of archives and special collections at Lewis Library. From this page you can discover digitized archives, collections, and past and current exhibits, as well as information about archives and special collections mission and history.

National History Day and Cultural Memory Research

CULTURAL MEMORY INSTITUTIONS

Although there are differences among libraries, archives, and museums regarding what they collect and preserve, digitization has given researchers the ability to view artifacts, books, and collections online. Many larger institutions share their Finding Aids online to let you know what is in their collections, but smaller archives and museums may not. This will you to make an appointment to visit an institution to view the item. It may be in an exhibit, or you may need to contact the archivist in order to see it.

 

Here are some helpful links that will give the researcher a more thorough understanding of how each cultural memory institution organizes its material and how it provides access to the researcher. Some of these tutorials provide information that will enable you to understand how to use a Finding Aid when searching an archive or a museum. A library will allow you to look through its catalog to find a book, DVD, or other item.  

 

Example: You are looking for information about daily life in Colonial America and one of your sources mentions a diary written by a young woman. Where can you find this primary source? A library might have a reproduction of the diary, but an archive or a museum might have the original diary. You could readily access the library copy from looking in the catalog, but you would have to do a search to see if the original is available either online or in the repository.

 

National History Day Roundup at LaGrange College - Get more information on National History Day

 

 

 Project Muse  "Why History Matters:  An Interview with John Tosh"

Archives Links

Society of American Archivists      Be sure to look at all the tabs across the top as well as the link for National History Day

 

Using Archives:  A Guide to Effective Research    This stunning and informative color guide from SAA guides you through research in the archives.

 

This brief tutorial from San Diego State University on how to use an archives requires QuickTime and audio. 

 

 

Internet Archive    You can search for historic books, videos, or audio files, too--all online. LaGrange College now has its yearbooks, catalogues, and bulletins completely online. Just go to the search button and type in LaGrange College. You can see what your institution's website looked like in the past by going to the Wayback Machine and typing in its URL.

 

Library Links

Look for the history Research Guide at LaGrange College through the Lewis Library

 

 

The American Library Association   Get booklists and factsheets that will answer your questions about doing your research in a library.

 

Museum Links

This link will give you names and URLs of some of the world's most famous museums so you can view their collections and Finding Aids online.

 

 

 

NB  This research guide from York University was originally developed in 2005 by Carolyn Caseñas, Adjunct Archivist, Clara Thomas Archives and Special Collections, Scott Library, York  University and Katherine Kalsbeek, Librarian, Rare Books and Special Collections, University of British Columbia. It has subsequently been revised and developed  by  Anna St.Onge and other archives staff, including Suzanne Dubeau, Julia Holland, and Michael Moir.

How to Narrow Down a Topic:

National History Day 

National History Day at LaGrange College has become a great tradition since the College  has co-hosted the West Georgia Regional NHD competition for decades.  Students compete at the regional level first, then state, and finally at the National Level.   For additional information, click on the link.

Check out Dr. Kevin Shirley's PPT presentation at the top of the page for suggestions for creating a great entry.

1) Choose a topic area.
2) Describe your topic area more specifically.
3) Name specific aspects of your topic.
4) Turn your topic into a sentence that is a statement.
5) Make your statement sentence into an argument/question.

 

You may find that some of your research will come to a 'dead end' while only using the library resources. Additional places may be needed to continue research for a class project, an ancestor tree, or general curiosity.

 

How to Research a Topic:

Researching a topic can be somewhat difficult for us all. The easiet way to gain knowledge on a topic is easiet when the project is broken down into steps. Instead of a giant research paper staring down at you, a step-by-step process will make it quick and simple. Thanks to Dr. Crutchfield, Professor of History at LaGrange College, a general template for a Research Trail is located below to help you start our research.

External Research:

  • The Troup County Archives, the Smithsonian Institution Archives, the National Archives and Records Administration, and the Library of Congress are excellent outside resources to use!

Other Templates:

Other things to help you research your topic can include an annotated bibliography and a literature/book review,  These are excellent examples from the University of Toronto and Dickinson College and a Google search can provide you with many more.

Sites accessed May 9, 2014

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