Tekla's Blog Wks. of Oct. 21-Nov. 10

Tekla's Blog

October 22nd

NSHS was closed yesterday. The electricity was turned off to accommodate the construction crews' plans. I went in today instead (Thursday). Karen was at a conference in Atlanta. Tom was organizing his presentation for another conference here in Nebraska. It is interesting to see the means by which the staff keeps up with current trends in the field(s). Moreover, this was my first opportunity to confront a collection of photographs (other than those at the MC) on my own.
I quickly set aside the labeling of photo-sleeves for U.S. Senator's photo negatives, and worked on organizing the Grunwald family photos. I began by studying the small pile of archival material that was donated along with the rest of the collection. I read a letter, looked at a family tree and created an extended version of it using funeral and memorial programs. I also studied a few news clippings about the family. After a short period (an hour at most) I felt confident enough to identify the Grunwald family members in the photographs. The collection contains 11 groups. The first is of group shots comprised of two or more members of the family, followed by a folder for each family member, and finally a photograph album created by one of the women. I enjoyed the work and it is giving me insight into how to manage the Malone Center photograph collection.

October 27
I worked at the NSHS today. Karen returned and liked my collection description for the Grunwald photos. I added numbers on the back of each photograph. The Collection is now complete.

October 28

I spent the entire day moving files from the Topical Boxes into the Eight main Series. The shift is complete but I still need to re box and re-envelope materials not yet in acid free folders.

Nov. 2
Started a new collection at the NSHS (A.M. material) for Tom. The collection is that of W.F. Crossley, a contractor/builder who lived in Kearney, Nebr. at the turn of the 20th century. Thus far, the most interesting aspect of the scores of ledgers that Crossley kept are the notes he wrote about money that he gave to women and girls. One of the women, Wilma, became Crossley's wife. I cannot yet tell whether the others are also family members or just friends. The interesting part is that Crossely sometimes provides commentary about what the gifts are earmarked for such as "car fare," or "trip to the park," or "dress." Crossley also keeps track of his spending on himself. His notes includes remarks like "candy," "book," and "went for a shave."

Nov. 9
Continued last week with Malone Collection, sandwiched between oral history interviews. Today, I worked on the Crossley Collection again. Crossley's books run from the 1880's until about 1920. His entries reflect changes in the material world. For example, in the late 1880's he begins to pay for electric lights. Later he begins to pay for a telephone and for automobile tires. He and a colleague purchase a machine for motion pictures about 1918.

Nov. 10
Back at the Malone Center. The UNL student (Brianna) is here using the collections. She says she is finding a great deal on the Malone Community's participation in the YWCA. Good. . . I am still arranging. I hope to begin writing the collection description next week. Also, I intend for this to serve as my last "regular" blog. I will upload my power point (or at least power point text) describing my experiences in LIS 638 next time.