Historical Resources of the Orthodox Church in America

SUMMARY

Orthodox Christianity has been present in America since the eighteenth century. Starting in Alaska with Russian missionaries, it has now spread to all fifty states. The history of this expansion is reflected in the archival holdings of a number of institutions, the most central of these being the archives of the Orthodox Church in America.     

Methods and Approaches to Using Web Archives in Computational Communication Research

ABSTRACT

This article examines the role of web archives as a critical source of data for conducting computational communication research. Web archives are large-scale databases containing comprehensive records of websites showing how those websites have evolved over time. Recent communication scholarship using web archives is reviewed, demonstrating the breadth of research conducted in this space. Subsequently, a methodological framework is proposed for using web archives in computational communication research. As a source of data, web archives present a number of methodological challenges, particularly with regards to the accuracy and completeness of web archives. These problems are addressed in order to better inform future work in this area. The closing sections outline a forward-looking trajectory for computational communication research using web archives.     

International Perspectives on the Image of Archivists and Archives

Abstract

There has been little systematic research about the image of archivists and archives. This study considers how this topic has been handled in an eight month span of The New York Times from late 1992 to mid 1993. While the news media’s coverage is present, it is clear that archives are treated as curiosities or when they relate to political disputes, are associated with prominent figures, or have interesting or different views to offer on important topics.     

The Last Revolution and the Next

ABSTRACT

New information and communications technologies have transformed the archival enterprise in less than a quarter century. They have changed the way we work and, more importantly, our relationship with the wider society. Access to archives has increased immeasurably and spurred demand for use of archives. At the same time, in a painful irony, public support for archival work is under attack. The democracy studies movement suggests ways of thinking about archives and their role in civil society. Archivists must continue to assert the case for archives in our larger civic life.     

To Bind or Not to Bind

Abstract

The decision of whether to bind paper copies or rely on electronic archives must be carefully considered. A comparison of the advantages and disadvantages of housing bound volumes and accessing electronic archives leaves questions about the reliability of long-term access, cost, and aggregate value of electronic archives. Criteria for evaluating electronic archives are provided, and archival models are presented. The consortium model offers real possibilities for handling both paper and electronic archives.     

The Russian Orthodox Church and Russian Emigration as Documented in the Archives of the Western American Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church outside of Russia

ABSTRACT

Among the extensive archives of the Western American Diocese of the ROCOR (over 2,000 document files), of greatest historical value are undoubtedly the archives of St. John (Maximovich) and of Archbishop Tikhon (Troitskii), the archives of the Russian spiritual mission in China, the archives from the Archbishops and Ecumenical Councils of the ROCOR, and the archives of the oldest clerics and parishes of the ROCOR. Also, the correspondence and labors of Bishop Nektarii (Kontsevich) and Archbishop Antonii (Medvedev) are of considerable significance for historians. In archives is hidden the potential for many research projects, for historians and linguists alike. Some documents have been researched, translated and published in the Diocesan Russian–English magazine, Spiritual Spring Journal. However, the majority of these unique materials are waiting for its researchers.     

Winners and Losers in the Global Research Village

Summary

I describe a set of automated archives for electronic communication of research information that have been operational in many fields of physics, and some related and unrelated disciplines, starting from 1991. These archives now serve over 35,000 users worldwide from over 70 countries, and process more than 70,000 electronic transactions per day. In some fields of physics, they have already supplanted traditional research journals as conveyers of both topical and archival research information. Many of the lessons learned from these systems should carry over to other fields of scholarly publication, i.e., those wherein authors are writing not for direct financial remuneration in the form of royalties, but rather primarily to communicate information (for the advancement of knowledge, with attendant benefits to their careers and professional reputations). These archives have in addition proven equally indispensable to researchers in less-developed countries.     

A Review of: “HMO/PPO Directory 2011, 23rd ed. Gottlieb,Richard, ed.”

ABSTRACT

There is limited literature on hospital archives projects. Hospitals understandably have a strong focus on patient care, but there is still a critical need to keep institutional archives. Among their many uses, institutional archives preserve corporate memory, provide evidence of interactions with community, and assist in contemporary decision making. This column describes a university-hospital partnership to undertake a one-year project to preserve, detail, and digitize ten boxes, or approximately 3.8 meters, of materials dating from 1980 to 2006. This project serves as a model for other hospital or health care facilities wanting to preserve and more actively engage with their archival collections.     

The zine anthology as archive: archival genres and practices

Jessie Lymn is a PhD Candidate at University of Technology Sydney (UTS) and a casual academic in the Information Studies programs at both UTS and Charles Sturt University. Her doctoral research focuses on the archival practices of subcultural communities and how this furthers temporal and spatial understandings of archives.

Building on Eichhorn’s concept of ‘archival genres’, this article considers the recent spate of zine anthologies published in Australia and the United States as examples of these genres. It proposes that the anthologies are archives of content, form and practice, given that they commonly reproduce entire zines as visual material, not just text, and are produced by members of zine communities. This article argues that the anthologies’ narratives, presentation and distribution preserve ideologies of zine culture and that archival genres create spaces for the preservation of practices.     

Reference No Longer Is a “P” Word

Abstract

From the beginning of reference service in archives, the job has been defined as pointing users to potentially useful sources. Changes in the archival environment and in information require that the reference archivist become a front-line marketer of archives. This in turn requires that the reference archivist understand and utilize the concepts of marketing-customer-centered, exchange, and product-which are discussed in this article. Personality traits of archivists mitigate in favor of and against archivists' adoption of marketing as a strategy for advancing the archival service to society, but the reference archivist must use character strengths to overcome the weaknesses.     

The Congressional Archive: A Breed Apart

ABSTRACT

Congressional archives are unique among archival collections. Bigger in size and often broader in scope in terms of the kinds of records they contain, these collections place an uncommon strain on academic archives. Before agreeing to assume such a burden, it is important for administrators to understand the special characteristics of a congressional archive and their staff's ability to manage the project while fulfilling their mission to the educational institution.     

Administration of the Aurukun archives held at the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies

ABSTRACT

The Aurukun archives held at the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies were initially developed in accordance with a ‘before it is too late’ model. In response to national controversy over proposed bauxite mining on Wik land, the Institute reorientated its documentation strategy towards collaborating with the Aurukun community. Wik people were not so much the subjects of the archive, but collaborators in its production. The outcome was an extensive multimedia archive which underpinned the Wik native title claim in 1993. Since then the collaborative relationship between the Institute and the Wik people has lapsed. Intermittent attempts to repatriate parts of the Aurukun archives were not successful in the long term. While revising controls over key Aurukun record groups, current Institute staff became aware of the extent and some of the strengths of the Aurukun archives. The staff have been attempting to revive the community’s awareness of their archives and their interest in them. Although the community’s interests presently have a different focus, revived collaboration between the Institute and the Aurukun community could result in some form of distributed custody and control of the Aurukun archives which may be of value to Wik society.     

Archives and trails from the First World War: repurposing imperial records of North African and Indian soldiers in Palestine and Syria, 1917-1923

ABSTRACT

First World War scholars more or less agree on the limitations imposed by archival sources on the study of North African and Indian troops. Conventional methods to find ‘the voice’ of the soldier do not apply in this case and the scarcity of records partly explains why so little is written. So, what opportunities are there in such an endeavour? This article argues for the need to decolonise military archives from the Great War era. That is to say, to use information that was originally gathered to serve narrow military interests as a means to understand the war experiences of the colonial soldiers. These sources, largely official records, bearing stamps of the past regimes, cannot be separated from the context or intent of their production. Nonetheless, they must not be overlooked as new historiographical demands make it necessary to read colonial archives for evidence of their context. Failing to draw from, and reflect upon, colonial era records on the Great War, despite their shortcomings, is tantamount to condemning valuable aspects of global history to oblivion. In turn, acknowledging these shortcomings, paradoxically, lends greater value to such sources as the colonial context in which they were produced becomes observable.     

Reference Services for Electronic Records in Archives

Abstract

The Center for Electronic Records of the National Archives is the unit of the National Archives and Records Administration responsible for the appraisal, accessioning, preservation, and provision of access to the permanently valuable electronic records of the Federal government. Recent changes in technology, especially the development of global networks of computers, have changed the way some archivists view the role of archives, especially for electronic records. From a reference services perspective, there is a continuing rqle for electronic records archives.     

Printing,Publishing and Book Development in Ethiopia up to the Era of Emperor Menelik II

Abstract

Printing, publishing and book development may be considered as the prerequisites for the development of any library and information system in any society. This paper attempts to cover publishing in Ethiopia from 1500–1900. During this period numerous ecclesiastical and a few original works by Ethiopians and foreigners had appeared in Ge’ez and in other dialects. The role of the missionary societies in book development was also significant. Most of the products of the printing presses were kept either in church archives or in Royal Libraries. The establishment of any modern type libraries was utterly neglected. Consequently, most of the literate population of that time had no opportunity to find out what was being published in their own country.