Hello Friends!
After a very full first week of the semester I am here to say that I love working in the Library and the National Museum Museum.
I am not saying this because technically this blog is part of my grade (Hi Lisa!)
I say this because the things I like about history come alive in the archives and the museum.
The first month of my internship is at the South Dakota Oral History Center (SDOHC) and if there is one thing that I have realized is that oral history is an underappreciated resource. At the SDOHC there are over five thousand interviews from the peoples of region. Immigrants and Native American voices fill shelves and hard drives here at the I.D. Weeks library, yet everytime I open a folder and I have to shake the dust off of my hands I feel a little sad.
These people took time to tell their story. It may not be big history but the interviews not only record daily life, they reflect the lifeblood of the region. Big history can be seen through several lenses including that of oral histories.
Do you know how some of the Lakota and Dakota people felt about the Pick-Sloan project?
Did you know that in Sioux Falls a bank was robber by one of the most infamous bank robbers in the early 20th century?
The Cold War was on the minds of many people- including South Dakotans.
The three topics above are simply a taste of topics that I have come across while working the in the SDOHC.
Oral history also keeps alive the stories that are uniquely an individuals. Grandparents, teachers, senators, all have stories to tell that are important.
Oral histories are also not very difficult to do and there has been a push by several agencies to preserve the voices of our community (StoryCorps is a huge example).
If you have a spare moments, take the time to go to the Youtube page:
https://www.youtube.com/user/SDOralHistoryCenter
or if you simply want to peruse the archives go to the South Dakota Oral History Center page at the USD library.
http://www.usd.edu/library/sdohc
If you have questions regarding how to do a oral history reach out! I would love to talk and help!
Peace,
-Kylie
After a very full first week of the semester I am here to say that I love working in the Library and the National Museum Museum.
I am not saying this because technically this blog is part of my grade (Hi Lisa!)
I say this because the things I like about history come alive in the archives and the museum.
The first month of my internship is at the South Dakota Oral History Center (SDOHC) and if there is one thing that I have realized is that oral history is an underappreciated resource. At the SDOHC there are over five thousand interviews from the peoples of region. Immigrants and Native American voices fill shelves and hard drives here at the I.D. Weeks library, yet everytime I open a folder and I have to shake the dust off of my hands I feel a little sad.
These people took time to tell their story. It may not be big history but the interviews not only record daily life, they reflect the lifeblood of the region. Big history can be seen through several lenses including that of oral histories.
Do you know how some of the Lakota and Dakota people felt about the Pick-Sloan project?
Did you know that in Sioux Falls a bank was robber by one of the most infamous bank robbers in the early 20th century?
The Cold War was on the minds of many people- including South Dakotans.
The three topics above are simply a taste of topics that I have come across while working the in the SDOHC.
Oral history also keeps alive the stories that are uniquely an individuals. Grandparents, teachers, senators, all have stories to tell that are important.
Oral histories are also not very difficult to do and there has been a push by several agencies to preserve the voices of our community (StoryCorps is a huge example).
If you have a spare moments, take the time to go to the Youtube page:
https://www.youtube.com/user/SDOralHistoryCenter
or if you simply want to peruse the archives go to the South Dakota Oral History Center page at the USD library.
http://www.usd.edu/library/sdohc
If you have questions regarding how to do a oral history reach out! I would love to talk and help!
Peace,
-Kylie
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