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Library Closed for July Fourth

July 1, 2022 by Christopher Heckman

The Library will be closed this Monday, July 4th, to celebrate Independence Day.

Happy Fourth of July!

Filed Under: Library Building, Library Hours Tagged With: hours

Library Hours – Summer

May 17, 2022 by Christopher Heckman

The Library will be operating under the following hours over Summer Break

  • Monday – Friday: 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM
  • Saturday – Sunday: CLOSED

Have a great summer!

Summer Pic

Filed Under: Library Building, Library Hours Tagged With: hours

Extended Hours for Finals Week!

May 3, 2022 by Christopher Heckman

Finals Hours graphic

Filed Under: Library Building, Library Hours

Intern Describes a Teacher’s Letter Collection

March 25, 2022 by Christopher Heckman

Hello readers!  My name is Zoey, and I am an intern at the St. Mary’s College of Maryland archives this spring.  I am currently in a graduate program for archives at the University of Maryland, and I graduate in May 2022!  The school requires each student to complete an internship before they graduate.

During my time here, I was assigned to read and describe the Lura Frances Johnson Letters (MSS 097) [link to: https://smcm.as.atlas-sys.com/repositories/2/resources/153 ].  I created the scope and contents notes within the finding aid for the archive’s website.  Before I go into detail about what the process was like, I would like to give some background information on Lura.  Miss Johnson was originally from West Point, Georgia and taught math at St. Mary’s Female Seminary, the predecessor institution of St. Mary’s College of Maryland, from about 1928-1943.  The majority of the letters were written to her mother.  The letters in this collection describe the daily events happening to her at the time.  This collection is a significant example of a teacher’s perspective on routine life at the school.

Lura Frances Johnson and Helen Leighley in Cleveland

Lura Frances Johnson (left) and Helen Leighley (right), a fellow St. Mary’s Female Seminary teacher, in Cleveland (MSS 097 Box 1 Folder 12)

Initially, I found the letters difficult to interpret.  Lura wrote most of her letters in cursive.  Since Miss Johnson was a teacher, I expected her to have neat cursive letters, but I was incorrect.  After reading through a couple of her letters, I began picking up on her handwriting, and it was much easier reading through them.  This assignment was the perfect task for me to dip my feet into the archival world.  It was challenging yet, rewarding when I finally deciphered Lura’s writing.

The key debate in archival work is whether we should process our collections with a minimalist or a maximalist perspective.  My mentor and I decided it would be best to take a maximalist approach when processing these letters.  Because these letters provide a unique perspective on the school’s history, we believed it would be best to summarize all the letters written by Miss Johnson.  By adopting the maximalist approach to these letters, we will be able to support our students in the future.  This is because we have a precise understanding of the information contained in these letters.  Robert S. Cox states in his article Maximal Processing, or, Archivist on a Pale Horse, “If a collection is less well described, less well organized, and less well understood, logic dictates that, all things being equal, it must take longer for archivists to navigate the collection when conducting reference work or when performing any of the other tasks that make use of the actual materials” (Cox, 2010).  By taking the time to read through and summarize these letters, we will be able to better help our students look for materials to support their research.  While the maximalist approach worked for this finding aid, we cannot use this approach to process all of the materials in an archive because it would take too much time to process.

Lura filled her letters with the daily activities of her life.  During part of her time at the college, Miss Johnson was completing her master’s degree.  She wrote her mother consistently about how her thesis was coming along.  Within these letters, you can practically feel the stress, joy, and relief when she finally finished her thesis.

Overall, I have learned a lot from my time interning at the St. Mary’s College of Maryland Archive.  I am so appreciative of this opportunity to learn the daily operations of a university archive.  The task I had of creating a scope and contents for these letters was a great first task in my archival career.  I cannot wait to see what is in store for my future and will be forever thankful for this opportunity!

Zoey Downs

Archives Intern

 

References

Robert S. Cox (2010) Maximal Processing, or, Archivist on a Pale Horse, Journal of Archival Organization, 8:2, 134-148, DOI: 10.1080/15332748.2010.526086

Filed Under: Archives, Library Collection Tagged With: featured, primary sources, Women's History Month

Library Hours – Spring Break

March 8, 2022 by Christopher Heckman

The Library will be observing the following hours for Spring Break.

Green Grass

Monday, March 14th – Tuesday, March 15th: 8:00 am – 5:00 pm

Wednesday March 16th – Saturday, March 19th: CLOSED

Sunday, March 20th: 3:00 pm – 10:00 pm

 

Photo by FOX from Pexels

Filed Under: Library Building, Library Hours Tagged With: hours

Dr. Cathy Buerger of the Dangerous Speech Project Presents Lecture and Workshop

February 25, 2022 by Christopher Heckman

Dr. Cathy Buerger

The Media Literacy, Civic Engagement and Democracy Project of the Center for the Study of Democracy and the Hilda C. Landers Library presents Dr. Cathy Buerger of the Dangerous Speech project on March 1.

Dr. Buerger will speak at 12:00 pm in the Blackistone Room on “Dangerous Disinformation:  The Rhetoric of January 6th and Where We Go From Here”.

Dr. Buerger will also conduct a workshop on March 1 at 2:30 pm entitled “Countering Hateful Speech Online:  An Introduction to Counterspeech”.  The workshop will be held in Anne Arundel Hall N110.

Filed Under: Events

Library Hours – Finals Week and Winter Break

December 14, 2021 by Christopher Heckman

Photo by eberhard grossgasteiger from Pexels

Monday 12/13:  8am-11pm
Tuesday 12/14:  8am-11pm
Wednesday 12/15:  8am-10pm
Thursday 12/16:  8am-9pm
Friday 12/17:  8am-NOON

Monday 12/20 through Wednesday 12/22:  8am-5pm

Thursday 12/23 through 1/31/2022 Closed for Winter Break!

Tuesday 1/4 through Friday 1/7:  8am-5pm
Monday 1/10 through Friday 1/14:  8am-5pm

Filed Under: Library Building, Library Hours

Thanksgiving Holiday Hours

November 17, 2021 by Christopher Heckman

Thanksgiving Decorations

The Library will have reduced hours over the Thanksgiving Holiday weekend.

Wednesday, November 24: CLOSED

Thursday, November 25: CLOSED (Happy Thanksgiving!)

Friday, November 26: CLOSED

Saturday, November 27: CLOSED

Sunday, November 28: 4pm-10pm

 

Filed Under: Library Building, Library Hours

The Long Fuse and the Big Lie: Misinformation and the 2020 Election

October 8, 2021 by Christopher Heckman

Join the Library and the Center for the Study of Democracy for a Virtual Lecture on October 14th!

The Long Fuse and the Big Lie: Misinformation and the 2020 Election

Filed Under: Events Tagged With: announcements, event

Book Sale!

October 4, 2021 by Christopher Heckman

Books will be flying off the shelves at the

ANNUAL LIBRARY BOOK SALE

John Marshall in LOC

 

This Wednesday, October 6

9 am – 5 pm, rain or shine, on the path outside the     Hilda C. Landers Library

$1 hardcovers, 50¢ paperbacks

Filed Under: Events Tagged With: announcements, book sale

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Recent Posts

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  • Library Hours – Fall 2022 Finals Week December 7, 2022
  • Library Hours – Thanksgiving Break 2022 November 14, 2022
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