Democratization of Archives:

Making Special Collections Broadly Accessible Through Emerging Technologies

Timothy G. Nutt

timn@uark.edu

Walk Through My Talk

•Types of Materials in Special Collections•Emerged Technologies and How We Can Build Upon Them•How We Can Take Advantage of Emerging Technologies•Final Thoughts•Questions

ExamplesExamples of Materials in Special Collections:

•Manuscript Collections•J.W. Fulbright Papers, NAFSA•Ozark Society Records

•Photograph Collections•Larry Obsitnik and Geleve Grice Photograph Collections

•Oral and Visual Histories•Finding Aids•Book Collections on a Particular Subject or Collected by an Individual

•Arkansas Collection•Jerry Russell Collection (Civil War/Circus History)•James D. Bales Collection (Religion/Conservative Movement),•John Gould Fletcher Collection (Literature and Arkansas History)

Still Using Emerged Technologiesand Building On Their Success

•Manuscript and Photograph Collections•Online Resources

Online Encyclopedias

UA Photographs Accompany Articles

Online Encyclopedias: Next Steps

Still Using Emerged Technologiesand Building On Their Success

•Manuscript and Photograph Collections•Online Resources•Encoded Archival Description

EAD-compliant Finding Aid

<c01 level="file"> <did><container type="Box">1</container>   <container type="Folder">1</container>   <unittitle>Emma Elizabeth Wayland Travel Diary</unittitle>   <unitdate>1910-1911</unitdate>   </did>  </c01>  </dsc>  </archdesc>  </ead>

EAD Finding Aids: Next Steps

Adding External Link Tags in Finding Aids

Aggregates and Consortia

Still Using Emerged Technologiesand Building On Their Success

•Manuscript and Photograph Collections•Online Resources•Encoded Archival Description•Minimal Processing Theory (MPLP, Meissner and Greene)

Still Using Emerged Technologiesand Building On Their Success

•Manuscript and Photograph Collections•Online Resources•Encoded Archival Description•Minimal Processing Theory (MPLP, Meissner and Greene)

•Digitization•Providing access to materials while preserving original materials

•Specific Collections (Civil Rights, George Fisher, BAD Times)

Digital Collections and Exhibits

Curriculum and Instructional Tools

Curriculum and Instructional Tools

Still Using Emerged Technologiesand Building On Their Success

•Manuscript and Photograph Collections•Online Resources•Encoded Archival Description•Minimal Processing Theory (MPLP, Meissner and Greene)

•Digitization•Providing access to materials while preserving original materials

•Specific Collections (Civil Rights, George Fisher, BAD Times)•Other Materials, e.g. books/journals, newspapers (National Digital Newspaper Project)

•Digital Repositories

Emerging Technologiesor, There for the Picking

Mobile Devices (Smart Phones, Tablets)

From: 615365:30 pm

University of Arkansas Libraries:

Special Collections just opened a new manuscript collection on Bigelow, Arkansas. Did you know this small town has ties to the Federal Pell Grant Program? Check it out at http://libinfo.uark.edu/specialcollections/findingaids/ead/transform.asp?xml=mc1787&xsl=findingaid

Text Messaging Service

Emerging Technologiesor, There for the Picking

Geographic Information Systems

GIS Applications

Pinning Photographs to Places

Emerging Technologiesor, There for the Picking

Matrix Barcodes

Quick Response Code

Add Emerging Technologies to

Previous Discovery Projects to Provide Additional Access

Anyone Can Hear a Florence Price Composition

Apply QR Codes to Publications

Apply QR Codes to Exhibits

Emerging Technologiesor, There for the Picking

Linked Data, Semantic Web, and EAC-CPF

Six Degrees of Separation

Wikipedia

Handbook of Texas History

Masonic Poets

Society

University of

Arkansas Virtual Intl.Authority

File

Library Of

Congress

Mary’s Chapel. Lodge of

Edinburgh #1

Louisiana Masonic Library

CensusRecords

U.S.Dept. of

Commerce

Battle of Honey Springs

Worldcat

Encyclopedia of Arkansas

AlbertPike

Don’t Throw Out the Baby…..

From Wikipedia

Tried and True Methods: Website

Tried and True Methods: Presentations and Programming

In Conclusion•Evaluate trends and emerging technologies and adapt to your specific needs

•Think of the Viewmaster and how it connects to 3-D television•Know what you want to do and for which collections you want to provide access•You can’t digitize everything, but you can digitize and provide access to selected materials

•Build upon tried and true methods and technologies•Exhibits, Presentations, Programming, Websites•Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, and more robust cloud computing, Podcasts•Crowdsourcing, RSS Feeds•Incorporate new technologies into print and exhibits•Personal Interaction is still one of the most effective means

•Engage Your Researcher No Matter What Age•Gamification

•Involve the Staff, Administration, and Faculty•Raise Funds (Donor, Grants, etc.)

Yes Timmy, the World is Changing

ca. 1985

Thank You.