National Archives Month: What’s Up in the Archives?

Any collection or item that is “Up in the Archives” always begins by spending sometime “down in the workroom”.  The real archival work takes place in the technical processing room on the first floor of the library, away from the Archive collections room.  Here in the workroom there are always various projects underway that comprise the daily tasks of Archival work.

Archivists are all about arranging files in logical order so they are easier to use.  We research the creators of collections and describe the contents using finding aids and catalog records so users can discover and access them.  We also spend a considerable amount of time preserving and protecting our collections from the elements, using acid-free folders, Mylar sleeves, and sturdy boxes and paying attention to light levels, temperature and humidity.  We even perform a few repairs to those items that have been ripped or torn, or scan and digitize a document to preserve it and provide access via the web. ...a little TLC goes a long way!

Throughout the processing and hands-on work, we can become extremely attached to our documents and their creators…WE LOVE OUR STUFF!  And more importantly, we love to share it.  Does Archival Science sound like something you’d be interested in?  Stop by the library to check out the collections and find out about courses in library, archival, or museum science!

ScotsRead Titles Added to the Collection

Just arrived!  New ScotsRead titles include:

• The One-day Contract: How to add value to every minute of your life by Rick Pitino
• Longbourn by Jo Baker
• The Circle: A Novel by Dave Eggers

Research Tip: Course Reserves

What are they? Where are they?

Course Reserves are library materials that check out for two hours and can only be used within the library building. They are available at the Circulation Desk and you'll need your student ID card to check out materials.

How can I find them? Does my professor have any course reserves?

You can find course reserves using the syllabus provided to you by your professors, or you can view the Searchable Course Reserves List in the Hewes Library Catalog. You can search by class, professor, or department.

Research Tip: Off Campus Database Access

All of the databases provided by Hewes Library can be accessed from off campus. To do so, follow these directions:

• Select the database you wish to use off campus. (You must select it from the library's web page instead of doing a web search for it.)
• You will be prompted at a MC log in screen to enter a user name and password. Enter your MC user name and password - which is the same one you use to access your MC email.
• Once logged in, you can use the resource as if you were on campus.

Fall Break Hours

Hewes Library will observe Fall Break hours beginning Thursday, October 17.  The library will be open:

• Thursday, October 17: 7:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
• Friday, October 18: 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
• Saturday - Sunday, October 19 - 20: Closed
• Monday, October 21: 8:00 a.m. - Midnight
• Tuesday, October 22: 7:30 a.m. - Midnight

National Archives Month: Homecoming Displays with Brittany Zenge '14

History Major, Brittany Zenge, ’14, has been spending the semester working on an independent study in Museum Studies (HIST 390).  Working with Archivist, Lynn Daw, she is examining the history of museum collecting, preservation, exhibition, and interpretation.  Her first love of these museum tasks is exhibits and displays, so what better mid-term assignment than creating just that for last weekend’s 2013 Homecoming events! 

Brittany interprets her experience in the following post:

Library Cases

"When Lynn asked me to design the library cases for Homecoming, I was ecstatic. I immediately wanted to get my hands on all of the artifacts in the archives. To decide on which artifacts to put in the case, I firstly had to decide what theme I wanted to go with. Seeing as it was Homecoming, there was a ready made title to bring to life, “Roll Out The Red.” From there I decided to make the cases resemble the red carpet like you see in Hollywood. This helped with picking out specific artifacts, like the roll of film and older camera.

My main goal was to keep to the Homecoming feel, therefore I kept pieces like the athletic jacket, football jersey, pipe band uniform and the yearbooks to signify those alums coming back to celebrate their time at Monmouth College.  Lastly, I placed Homecoming pins and Monmouth College banners inside each case to help represent school pride during this exciting weekend.

At MC, students can investigate the inter-related professions of Library Science, Archive Management, and Museum Studies, through a variety of courses and independent studies, no matter what major field of study they are pursuing.   Stop by the library for more information!"

New ScotsRead Titles - Just in time for Fall Break!

The following titles have just been added to the ScotsRead Collection on the Main Level of Hewes Library.  Find them next to the large group study tables and take one home for break:

• Doctor Sleep: A Novel by Stephen King
• Killing Jesus: A History by Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard
• From Scratch: Inside the Food Network by Allen Salkin
• The Signature of All Things by Elizabeth Gilbert
• The Spymistress: A Novel by Jennifer Chiaverini

New Items at Hewes Library

New items are added to the Hewes Library Collection on a continual basis. Recent titles have included:

• Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
• Last Nude by Ellis Avery
• Trial of Madame Caillaux by Edward Berenson
• Cronkite by Douglas Brinkley
• When It Happens by Susane Colasanti
• Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
• Encyclopedia of Saints by Rosemary Ellen Guiley
• Horse Named Sorrow by Trebor Healey
• Marvel Comics The Untold Story by Sean Howe
• Antietam and Fredericksburg by Francis Winthrop Palfrey

Database of the Month: Mango Languages

Mango Languages is October's Database of the Month.  Mango is an online language-learning system that can help you learn languages like Spanish, French, Japanese, Brazilian Portuguese, German, Mandarin Chinese, Greek, Italian and more.  There are over 50 different language & ESL modules to choose from in the system. 

Mango Languages features:

• 24/7 Access to language resources
• Mobile support - 34% of users access Mango products from mobile devices
• Apps for both the iPhone and Android operating systems
• Unlimited access to language learning modules
• Voice comparison
• Native speakers examples
• Articulated speed in lessons

National Archives Month: What's Up in the Archives

October is American Archives Month!  This is a time to focus on the importance of the documents and items that record our daily lives, records created by individuals, organizations, and governments.  “What records?” you might ask…

Think for a moment about your daily activities and the records you create.  These notes of daily life: correspondence, emails, tweets, diaries, legal documents, receipts, photographs, video and sound recordings, can all be considered potential Archival material when they contain enduring value and enhance a collective public memory.

How about a college student’s scrapbook from 1917 or the personal collections of a jazz aficionado?  Perhaps a page from the Apollo 11 flight plan? … A recording from President John F. Kennedy that reveals as much about being a father as it does about being president… or a photograph of a little girl and her bonnet taken during the Civil War.

Each of these historical records contains a lasting, intrinsic value that speaks volumes about a place and time and the people and culture that created them.  How do our records created today reflect what we are about? How are we making memories?

Muslim Journeys Book Discussion: Columbia Sourcebook of Muslims in the U.S.

Please join us for our second book discussion featuring: 

Columbia Sourcebook of Muslims in the U.S. by Edward Curtis

Discussion Leader: Spencer Dew
 

Thursday, October 10, 2013, 7:00pm
Barnes Classroom, Hewes Library, Monmouth College
Monmouth, IL 61462

We have a limited number of books for those interested in participating in these book discussions led by local scholars. Anyone interested in participating in this series of discussions of five selected titles from the Muslim Journeys Bookshelf theme of American Stories, please contact Rick Sayre, 309-457-2192, Library Director, Hewes Library, Monmouth College.

For more information on the Bridging Cultures: Muslim Journeys Grant, please visit: http://library.monmouthcollege.edu/MuslimJourneys

Research Tip: Learn more about your Library Accounts

Want to learn more about your Library User Accounts? Each Monmouth College students, staff, or faculty member has two Hewes Library accounts. 

1. Library / I-Share Account: Allows patrons to renew items currently checked out and to place requests for books through the I-Share Catalog. You can also maintain a list of favorites in the system.
2. ILLiad Account: Allows patrons to place interlibrary loan requests for articles and print materials that are not available in the I-Share catalog. Electronically received interlibrary loans requests can also be retrieved in a patron's ILLiad account.

Learn more about the differences between the two accounts and how to locate your username and passwords for each account.