On Monday, May 17, 2010, I began work as the Archives Assistant here at the Congregational Library. I am entering my final year as a MS/MA candidate in the Archives/History dual-degree program at Simmons College. While I moved to Boston for this program, I gained a taste for archival work at the Baltimore Museum of Industry, where I worked for several years. Once in Boston, I gained experience through internships at the Massachusetts Historical Society and at the Congregational Library.
My primary role at the Congregational Library will be to continue the image collection cataloging project on which my predecessor, Sam Smallidge, worked so hard. In addition to working with the image collection, I will continue work on the object cataloging project, which I began during Fall term, 2009. Further work will include finishing the development of a database for an Index to the Library Bulletin. The Index will be interactive, much like the Necrology Index. Further work will include processing archival collections, like the Cranston, R.I., church records, and other work as needed.
Since beginning at the library last week, I have begun to get my hands dirty. The majority of the time, thus far, has been spent processing the Cranston church records. Within this collection, I have come across a few gems. The records, from what I’ve seen so far, date back to the early twentieth century, spanning the World Wars. Among the letters from this period is a letter from PFC Studley to the Knightsville Church in Cranston, his home church. What is curious about the letter is not the content, but the format of the letter. The letter sent to Cranston was a copy. V-Mail letters from the soldiers were microfilmed for transport and then reprinted near the destination so as not to clog up the shipping chains with bulky manuscript letters.
This is but a small glimpse into the work I will be doing at the Congregational Library. I look forward to learning more from the staff while using the skills I am learning at Simmons College to benefit the library. Please look forward to more blog posts from me over the next year as I seek to make the knowledge at the Congregational Library more accessible.
-Abraham
Comments