Historical Reminiscents Podcast EP 82: Archival Challenges During Covid-19

sign saying challenges ahead

In today's episode I'm talking about archival pandemic backlogs and pressure points that COVID-19 have created in archival settings.  Mentioned in this episode:-Samantha Thompson, "Why don't archivists digitize everything?" Download or Listen Now: Transcript of episode 82.

Archives Month Series on History@Work

Filing cabinets with archival material.

Over the past couple of months I have been working with  History@Work affiliate editor Kristin O’Brassill-Kulfan, and NCPH The Public Historian co-editor/Digital Media Editor Nicole Belolan to help pull together a month long series of posts about of archives and public history. This series will be published throughout October (Archives Month in the United States). I'm super … Continue reading Archives Month Series on History@Work

Historical Reminiscents EP 09: Demystifying Archival Labour – Access

New podcast episode! In the final episode of my mini-series on “Demystifying Archival Labour” I talk about all the access and archival labour feels. I reflect on why access is at the core of what archivists do, why we don't 'just digitize everything', and the challenges of managing researcher expectations. Missed part one of this … Continue reading Historical Reminiscents EP 09: Demystifying Archival Labour – Access

Historical Reminiscents EP 08: Demystifying Archival Labour – Preservation

New podcast episode! In part four of the mini-series on “Demystifying Archival Labour” I discuss preservation best practices and why preservation is a fundamental part of making archival records accessible. I chat about  my favourite resources and tools for teaching about preservation. Missed part one of this series? Listen to it here. Mentioned in this … Continue reading Historical Reminiscents EP 08: Demystifying Archival Labour – Preservation

Historical Reminiscents EP 07: Demystifying Archival Labour – Description

New podcast episode! In part three of the mini-series on “Demystifying Archival Labour” I tackle the work of archival description and talk about the intellectual work goes into descriptive practices. I also discuss my favourite strategies for teaching about description and the inherent challenges of describing records using RAD.  Missed part one of this series? … Continue reading Historical Reminiscents EP 07: Demystifying Archival Labour – Description

Historical Reminiscents EP 06: Demystifying Archival Labour – Arrangement

New podcast episode! In part two of the mini-series on "Demystifying Archival Labour" I tackle the work of archival arrangement and talk about how archives are organized, archival arrangement principles and how to teach about arrangement in the classroom. I also discuss the idea of alternative arrangements as a means of shifting away from colonial … Continue reading Historical Reminiscents EP 06: Demystifying Archival Labour – Arrangement

Active History Archives Theme Week

I'm overjoyed by how the Active History Archives Theme Week has come together.  This week emerged after the 'secret archives' new story and the subsequent response from the archival community.  The goal of the theme week is to foster discussion between archivists and historians.  Posts in the week tackle issues of archival labour, how private … Continue reading Active History Archives Theme Week

Volunteer Labour in Archives

I've been thinking a lot recently about the implications of volunteer labour in the archival profession and the challenges faced by archives that are completely volunteer run.  If you haven't already go read "Implications of Archival Labor" by Stacie Williams. Williams' work clearly outlines the problems wTith invisible labour in archives, the need for archives … Continue reading Volunteer Labour in Archives