Last Week

I just finished up my last week of internship hours.  That's right, 180 hours just flew by!  I spent the week wrapping up projects and almost made it.  There is still a bit more of Briscoe to clean-up, but I've been asked if I want to work on some archives hours to finish it if there are any available!  I've really enjoyed my internship and all of the support I've had in making me more prepared to be a real archivist.

Last week I mentioned that I was looking through the chronological files in Briscoe's Dean of Faculties Papers.  I went through about eight of the larger folders in a box and about half had one sensitive document.  The call was made to go ahead and restrict these in the same manner as the subject files.  I wrote up a little thing in the scope and content note. 

Several files have been restricted, including lettered files in the subject files and the chronological files series.  These files were restricted because of a few sensitive documents; however, there are other materials in the folders that are not restricted and are of research value.  Materials include correspondence about students, faculty and the university during World War II and about university events, research, and daily life during Briscoe’s tenure as Dean of Faculties.  These files can still be requested for use and the restricted materials will be removed at that time.

I really hope that researchers aren't detered if they need the files because there is some really good stuff in there!  It is just too much to go through at this time.  It will be better to just do small amounts as needed.

I also got a new box of Briscoe files to be interfiled in with the rest!  They were files kept by the old archives in the President's office.  As papers came in they would be collected and labeled by the date that the folder was created.  Now I had to take these the old archival files and mix them with the new.  Keeping them together wasn't as important because their order was artificially created by the archives at a later date.

Most contents of the old folders were absorbed by folders that already existed in the chronological files.  The ones that filled in holes I went ahead and put into new folders.  The older folders were few in number and looked out of place next to the new folders.  It wasn't too much more processing.

 I also went over the Bureau of Public Discussion finding aid that Carrie had made notes on for me.  I did some editing and it is now off to Phil for review!  There were a few files that could have been removed earlier because they were just telephone records and financial statements.  These were things Carrie said shouldn't have gotten to the archives anyway.  I also put labels on all of the boxes in both the Bureau of Public Discussion Records and the Briscoe Papers.  I really like the look of boxes with new labels. 

It was a great semester and I'm looking forward to more time in the archives.  I still have to do a presentation about my internship on Monday, so maybe if I go through blog withdraw I can blog about that.  Thank you to Carrie, Dina, Phil, Kate, and Brad for sharing their expertise with me and giving me a great archival experience!  Now for one last semester and job hunting.