News

Collection and Archive Out of Storage

The Park Forest Local History Collection and Archive is out of remote storage, after five years of captivity in PODS!! The Park Forest Historical Society and Park Forest Public Library are working together to lease a space for the archive and the Society office and Digital Lab in the Church of St. Mary Catholic Church, 227 Monee Road on the southern edge of Park Forest, Illinois. The Village of Park Forest has contributed through a grant to the Society.

Part of the collection, inlcuding 270 subject files, catalogued books on Park Forest and reports by the Village of Park Forest are housed at the Library at 400 Lakewood Blvd. As the collection in St. Mary’s gets better situated, more materials may be transferred from the Library. The Society is still storing some materials in another nearby church, as well.

For an account of the move, with photos, read our latest newsletter on the website, accessible from the home page.  Free at last!

Merle Branner is now the Coordinator of Instructional Technology at Woodlands Academy in Lake Forest, IL. Additionally, Merle is the Webmaster and will provide her expertise to the Alumni Director who manages the School’s Archives housing 153 years of history.

Laura Fu, Digital Assets Specialist at Sears and Graduate Student at UW-Milwaukee has recently published “The Government Response to 9/11: Communications Technology and the Media” in Library and Archival Security (Volume 24, Issue 2; page 103-118).

You can check out her article online; the site may require a password:
http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/01960075.2011.592034

Congrats to Merle and Laura!

For those of you attending the SAA conference, you may notice that there are a lot of attendees who are getting nervous about making it home to Washington, D.C., North Carolina, or elsewhere along the eastern seaboard due to Hurricane Irene. As official and unofficial hosts, Chicago Area Archivists wanted to post a few suggestions of inexpensive places to stay … just in case they’re needed.

Arlington House, Lincoln Park  (Chicago Getaway Hostel), 616 W. Arlington Place
http://www.getawayhostel.com/

H.I. Hostel, downtown Chicago, 24 East Congress:
http://www.hichicago.org

HostelWorld – list of cheap places to stay in Chicago – including hotels
http://www.hostelworld.com/findabed.php/ChosenCity.Chicago/ChosenCountry.USA

University of Chicago – International House (for short-term guests)
http://ihouse.uchicago.edu/residency/residency_short.shtml

Please feel free to post other ideas in the comments.  And let your fellow SAAers know about this blogpost!

The Chicago Area Medical Archivists (CAMA) are proud to announce their new blog! It not only features the usual news and event information, but also serves as a research gateway.

http://chicagoareamedicalarchivists.blogspot.com/

Many of the historical figures in Chicago’s medical history spent their time at more than one institution. The blog’s “Historical Notes” will help researchers and other archivists track down these overlapping collections. Also, “Historical Notes” will be the place to share information about hospitals or medical and nursing schools that have closed or been absorbed by other institutions. This ongoing feature will serve as a “one-stop shop” for these frequently asked questions.

The blog also features “Research Tips.” CAMA members will share their tips on navigating their collections or finding relevant material outside of Chicago.

Please take a look, and let us know what you think. If you would like to contribute to the CAMA blog, please contact CAMA Web Moderator, Nathalie Wheaton, at chicagomedicalarchivists@gmail.com.

Malachy McCarthy, archivist at the Claretian Missionaries Archives, has been chosen to receive the SAA’s Sister Claude M. Lane  Award for his significant contribution to the field of religious archives.  A well-deserved compliment to one of our local archivists, who has contributed so much to the life of Chicago’s archival community, in addition to establishing the Chicago Area Religious Archivists (CARA). Read Joan Sweeney’s article on the CARA blog: http://cara-news.blogspot.com/2011/04/malachy-mccarthy-to-receive-award.html 

The CAA Spring Member’s Meeting was held on Thursday, March 31st with thirty-two people in attendance. The election for the two open vacancies for the 2011-2013 CAA Steering Committee Terms was so close that a run-off election took place. Rob DeLand and Andy Steadham were elected to fill the vacancies.

All present voted to approve the revised by-laws – these are now posted. Please note that the Steering Committee received feedback regarding Article III, Section 3 which includes the statement: “Voting shall take place at the Annual Meeting and results shall be based on a majority of members present.” Members asked the Steering Committee to provide electronic voting in the future for people who are unable to attend the meeting.

At the meeting the formation of three subcommittees were approved: Events, Professional Development, and Outreach. 

Minutes were taken but have not yet been approved. Once approved these minutes will be posted.

Illinois’ Historical Records Preservation Grants: The best deal in town! 

The Illinois State Historical Records Advisory Board (ISHRAB), using funding from National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC), is offering grants of up to $5,000 to Illinois historical records keepers to develop and/or carry out projects to identify, preserve, access and use historical records in Illinois. Information about this grant program is listed below.

Grant Amounts and Requirements

Minimum grant request: $500; Maximum grant request: $5,000. All grants require a one-to-one ($1 for $1) in-kind and/or cash match

Application Period: March 1, -  March 15, 2011

All grant projects will run for one year.

Guidelines and Application Form: The grant guidelines which includes the application form is available on-line at http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/ishrab/ishrab.html or you may request the guidelines be mailed to you. The application must be printed, filled out, and mailed. It cannot be submitted on-line.

The Illinois State Historical Records Advisory Board is made up of representatives from different archives, museums, universities and libraries from around the state and seeks to facilitate cooperation among historical records depositories and other information agencies within Illinois.  The Illinois State Archives serves as the coordinator of the ISHRAB.  

For additional information or to request the grant guidelines and application form, contact David Joens at 217-782-3492 or email djoens@ilsos.net.

DePaul University Special Collections and Archives Department is honored to announce the recent donation of papers and artifacts by Sister Helen Prejean, CSJ, noted advocate for death-row inmates, and death penalty opponent.  Sister Helen’s extensive donation includes her correspondence with prison inmates, records documenting her work with anti-death penalty organizations, and manuscripts of her books Dead Man Walking and Death of Innocents, as well as props used in the film adaptation of Dead Man Walking. The initial deposit of records will be open for research by early 2012, and will be supplemented by future transfers from Sister Helen. 

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Helen Fedchak, Processing Archivist, accessions Prejean Papers

History Fair events are soon upon us and your involvement is necessary to provide a quality judging experience for students in elementary or high schools.  You may see brilliance…or you may see the best a student or school can do…but you have an opportunity to make a difference in students’ education.

This is a chance to both fairly assess student work and turn students on to libraries and history by reinforcing their efforts!

Please join us at a four-hour Saturday event or a weekday paper judging session.  Consider going with a group of CAA members and turning it into a social event (pubs such as Krolls is not to far from IIT for an after-judging event).

See History Fair Web site for information about volunteering.

The Illinois State Historical Records Advisory Board (ISHRAB), using funding from National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC), is offering grants of up to $5,000 to Illinois historical records keepers to develop and/or carry out projects to identify, preserve, access and use historical records in Illinois. Information about this grant program is listed below.

Grant Amounts and Requirements

Minimum grant request: $500

Maximum grant request: $5,000

All grants require a one-to-one ($1 for $1) in-kind and/or cash match

Application Period: March 1, -  March 15, 2011

All grant projects will run for one year.

Guidelines and Application Form: The grant guidelines which includes the application form is available on-line at http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/ishrab/ishrab.html or you may request the guidelines be mailed to you. The application must be printed, filled out, and mailed. It cannot be submitted on-line.

The Illinois State Historical Records Advisory Board is made up of representatives from different archives, museums, universities and libraries from around the state and seeks to facilitate cooperation among historical records depositories and other information agencies within Illinois.  The Illinois State Archives serves as the coordinator of the ISHRAB.  

For additional information or to request the grant guidelines and application form, contact David Joens at 217-782-3492 or email djoens@ilsos.net.