Preserving the Past: A Basic Handbook for Archiving in Rural Alaska

I created this handbook after several conversations with Alaskans at the Alaska Library Association meeting in Fairbanks in February 2011. Many people asked me questions like “What do I do with my cassette tapes” or, “How can I start archiving some my communities' materials?” My intent is to provide a resource for rural Alaskans, and other people who are looking to start an archive, learn how to digitize tapes, or find a place to donate materials. This is a 15 page basic handbook that can be used by anyone; high-school students and Elders will be able to make use of it. While the resources are available, they are not truly accessible because they are often incredibly technical, and require a background knowledge in archiving. I do not expect all rural Alaskans to have these skills, so this handbook is a skeleton that can be used as a stepping stone for archiving. It is also not a static document; any input is welcomed, and I appreciate the input I have received thus far.  Click here for the handbook. For more information, contact Stacey Baldridge at smbaldridge@alaska.edu.

Sealaska Heritage Institute to collaborate on preserving recordings

The Sealaska Heritage Institute has received an IMLS grant to digitize and annotate Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian recordings. By working with Native speakers the project will not only preserve recordings but also work to identify the contents of the recordings. In many cases historic recordings are not well labeled, so it can be difficult to determine the contents of the recording from the written labels (if they exist). As part of this grant ANLA will assist with digitization, while SHI will assist with identifying contents of Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian recordings at ANLA. In addition, ANLA will provide digital copies of its Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian collections to SHI.

There's a nice article about the project in the Alaska Dispatch.

Also see the SHI Special Collections Blog.

Yup'ik video tapes arrive from Kuskokwim Campus

Today we received 11 boxes of video tapes from the UAF Kuskokwim Campus. The tapes have been donated by Sophie and Oscar Alexie and document many years of Yup'ik instructional activity in the Lower Kuskokwim region. We will be inventorying these tapes over the next few weeks and prioritizing digitization efforts.

Thanks to Oscar and Sophie for preserving these materials.