A Little About Myself

I graduated Michigan State University in 2010 with my B.A in History and my minor in German Language. i decided to become an archivist just before graduating and during my last summer at State, I volunteered for David Votta, Head of Special Collections at the Capital Area District Library in Lansing (http://www.cadl.org/) Michigan. I had never even seen the inside of an archive, nor did I know much about it outside of what I had read online, but I knew that being immersed in so much knowledge and history, and learning something new every day, sounded perfect for me. But I wanted to get my feet wet so I contacted David. He immediately welcomed me into his archive and made me feel comfortable, despite being so new to the whole idea of archive and frankly, being pretty useless. 


My first project was to take previously digitized photographs and to tweak them slightly to enhance their quality. I then uploaded the photographs to their website and transcribed whatever was written on the back of the photograph for users. I was very grateful for any skills whatsoever, and I'm especially gratefully that I didn't royally screw anything up. 


Just after graduation I enrolled at Wayne State University in their Library and Information Science program, which also has a certificate in Archival Administration.


My second gig was volunteering under Brian Wilson, a Digital Processing Archivist at the Benson Ford Research Center at the Henry Ford in Dearborn, Michigan (http://www.hfmgv.org/research/index.aspx). Again, I hadn't even started my program or taken any archival classes yet and my experience was still basic. My project while working there was to create Finding Aids. I pulled boxes from the archive shelves and made a box list and filled in the abstract and all the institution's information.  It was very encouraging for these fellow archivists to take me under their wing and to teach me and correct my mistakes when I knew nothing about the field. 


Upon graduating from MSU, I got a job working as a Historical Presenter at Greenfield Village (http://www.hfmgv.org/village/index.aspx). I got to play around in historical clothing from 1760 (at Daggett Farmhouse) and 1885 (at Firestone Farmhouse) and learned to do all kinds of crazy things, like cook in an open hearth with cast iron pots, and cook on a cast iron cook-top. I learned how to use an iron that you heat on the stove and need to use hot pads to handle. I also learned how to dip candles and taught many children how to do so as well. Working there really made me appreciate history even more than I already did because I was able to see how artifacts were used in everyday life. And there were plenty of artifacts, including a genuine Hogs Head located in Daggett.


At the end of summer in 2011, I obtained a great job working as a Library Science Intern at the Bloomfield Township District Library (www.btpl.org). It is a three year, paid internship that really has helped me to develop my reference skills, skills working with different types of materials, and public service skills. 


Fall of 2011 started my first semester at WSU. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to take any archival courses yet, but I did take some really great library courses, including Intro to the Profession, Reference, and Technology. For my future career, I feel the technology class was the most beneficial. I learned new skills in Excell, Access and web page development. I also learned about open source software. 


Winter of 2012 I was finally able to start my archiving classes. Along with Library Management and Cataloging, I took my Archival Administration class. Finally I was able to learn the fundamentals of archives. I was able to tour the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History as well as Allied Vaughn - GM's Archive. 


This summer, I snag a really great opportunity as a Digitization Fellow at the Detroit Historical Society at Historic Fort Wayne in Downtown Detroit (http://detroithistorical.org/). It has been one of the greatest experiences overall. Myself and another fellow are working together to digitize hundreds of photographs from the Documenting Detroit collection. It is a series of photographs taken of Detroit by College for Creative Studies in the 70s and 80s. More to come in the next blog.


Thanks for reading!