T.G.I.F.L.T. (Thank goodness it’s Friday link time)
From Leah:
I’m really impressed by the University of Wisconsin-Milwuakee’s “The March on Milwaukee Civil Rights History Project.” The project brings together primary sources from across the university’s collections related to the black freedom struggle in Milwaukee. It’s particularly strong on issues related to open housing and the desegregation of schools, especially the one-day boycotts known as “Freedom Days” that occurred in many northern cities in the mid-1960s. Unlike many university-based digital archives project, this site contains plenty of context and supporting materials–maps, a glossary of important terms and people, a timeline–to help a non-specialist understand the scope and contents of the collection. They’ve also done an impressive job digitizing and publishing archival film (!!) and audio materials, in addition to photographs, court cases, ephemera and other documents.
From Ellen:
The New-York Historical Society has digitized 14 manuscript collections relating to slavery and abolition and put them online. They include many gems, including the records of the African Free School and account books, ships’ logs, and bills of sale from individuals and companies involved in the slave trade. Alas, these digital collections are not particularly user-friendly. The documents are presented almost entirely in facsimile (ie, images of the original documents rather than more easily readable type) and while you can search among and within the documents, it is vital to have a strong sense of what you are looking for–the site does virtually nothing to contextualize them. Still, it’s never a bad thing to have greater access to such rare and important archival materials.
And finally . . . did you know that ASHP is now on Twitter? Follow us at ashp_cml
Last 5 posts by Leah Nahmias
- Teaching "What This Cruel War Was Over" - March 28th, 2011
- State of Siege and Public Memory at Ole Miss - March 25th, 2011
