Kristin MacDonough, Ohio State University, Summer 2012, IMLS
This summer, I worked with the film collection of the Byrd Polar Research Center Archival Program at The Ohio State University. The Archives was established in order to collect and preserve materials relevant to polar exploration and scientific discovery. Among these materials is a collection of films related to Admiral Richard E. Byrd for whom the polar research center and archival program is named after. I worked under the Polar Curator, Laura Kissel, to begin evaluating the films in the collection in order to provide the archives with a better understanding of its holdings. Work during this summer included performing a collection assessment of approximately fifty boxes of film from both the Admiral Richard Byrd Archives and the Papers of Sir George Hubert Wilkins. It also involved furnishing the archive with materials for film inspection, performing film inspections and repairs, and providing instruction sessions with staff members for future inspections.
This internship provided not only hands on practice in handling film, but also the opportunity to learn and understand how archival collections exist inside a larger university system and how different programs can interact and learn from one another.
