News & EVENTS

On November 2nd voting for next year's New England Archivist leaders will begin, but you can only vote if you are a member. If you are not a current member or your membership has lapsed, you must renew your membership by noon TODAY (October 26, 2015) to be eligible to vote in this year's election.

If you have any issues renewing your NEA membership, contact Membership Secretary Elizabeth Slomba at membership@newenglandarchivists.org.

Now that the New England Archivists' Fall 2015 Meeting is only two weeks away -- now is the time to register (if you haven't already, of course!). As you know, there will be an opportunity to listen to independent scholar and collector of 19th-century photographs, Jane Turano-Thompson talk about "Photography and the Cultural Experience of Image-Making in American Society, 1840-1880." And at the end of the symposium, Providence's Wonder Show will perform "Strange Sites and Untold Stories" -- a modern-day lantern slide show.

But there is so much to see while you are in Providence, RI, that we hope you will take advantage of getting to know the city. Look to the Fall 2015 Meeting page on the website to find information on the best ways to travel to Providence, where to park, where to stay, and a helpful map you can download of meeting sites and area attractions put together by NEA member Janaya Kizzie.

Providence is really such a cool city -- register for the symposium and make a full day of it: exploring the city and learning about 19th-century photography.

Looking forward to seeing you in Providence!

NOVEMBER IS ELECTION MONTH

Over the past few years NEA has been developing the organization's member benefits and programs exponentially. This effort is due, in part, to the dedication of our current and past leadership. On November 2nd voting for next year's NEA leaders will begin, but you can only vote if you are a member. If you are not a current member or your membership has lapsed, you must renew your membership by 12pm on October 26, 2015 to be eligible to vote in this year's election. Please review your email address in the membership directory and make sure it is correct. It is this email address that will be linked to your ballot.

Next week we will introduce you to our round of candidates (listed alphabetically). Or you can check out the candidate's statements at anytime on the NEA website. Private and secure voting will take place online through votenet.com.  Please look for an e-mail on November 2nd with your unique user name and password to vote.

Vice President/President Elect
   -- Karen Adler Abramson
   -- Ellen Doon

Secretary
   -- Caitlin Birch
   -- Adrienne Pruitt

Representative-at-Large
   -- Abigail Cramer
   -- Liz Francis
   -- Ben Johnson
   -- Betsy J. Spekke

This summer WGBH/FRONTLINE Records Manager John Campopiano launched The New England Media & Memory Coalition (NEMMC) to great success. Geared towards anyone interested in archives, community media, or media in general, NEMMC is a regional organization dedicated to fostering discussion and promoting a better understanding of how media and digital and analog technologies intersect with and relate to memory, identity, nostalgia, and senses of place. It supports and is represented by myriad professions including but not limited to archives, A/V and moving-image conservation, cultural informatics, art, and information science.

Find out more by reading NEMMC's inaugural quarterly newsletter which offers insight into some of the content (interviews, longer form articles, videos, and more) featured on the website. Going further, the newsletter also adds interesting tidbits related both to NEMMC activities and the themes and ideas it explores. If you are interested in receiving future newsletters, contact John Campopiano directly at jcampopiano@gmail.com.

Stay tuned for new content over the coming months including a NEMMC meet-up in the Boston area in early 2016. And watch for our upcoming Facebook and Twitter pages which will be a great way to hear about NEMMC's current and upcoming activities.

The New England Archivist Fall 2015 Meeting in Providence, RI, is just a mere 3 weeks away! Don't forget to register for this completely unique meeting focused on the identification and description of 19th-century photography. In our last email we told you about the STRANGE SITES AND UNTOLD STORIES performance from the Wonder Show which will feature a lantern slide-show using the Providence Public Library's special collections, reproduced using 19th-century photographic techniques.

In this post we want to tell you about the symposium's opening speaker, Jane​ Turano-Thompson, an independent scholar and collector of 19th-century photography. ​See things from the other side of the table with her talk, "Photography and the Cultural Experience of Image-Making in American Society, 1840-1880."

Jane Turano-Thompson is formerly Editor of The American Art Journal, in New York and subsequently Consulting Editor of that magazine. She has written for numerous art and antiques publications and has lectured at the Dublin Seminar for New England Folklife, the American Antiquarian Society, the New England American Studies Association, the Smith College Museum of Art, Middlebury College, the New Bedford Whaling Museum, the National Portrait Gallery, and many other museums and historical societies.

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There are still spots available to attend the afternoon symposium portion of the meeting. For more information about the program, local resources (such as parking, hotels, and restaurants), and the registration process, see the NEA website or follow us on Twitter and Facebook using the hashtag #NEAfall15.

Looking forward to seeing you in Providence!

Today is the last day to reserve a spot for this Saturday, October 17th, New England Archivists and the NEA Roundtable of Early Professionals and Students (REPS) 2nd Annual NEA/REPS Day of Service (#REPSserves15). 

But some of the venues still have some spaces available and they need our help:
     -- History Project: Documenting LGBTQ (Boston, MA)
     -- USS Constitution Museum (Charlestown, MA)
     -- Worcester Refugee Archive (Worcester, MA)
     -- Colchester Historical Society (Colchester, CT)
     -- Hardwick Historical Society (Hardwick, VT) (FULL)

Read more about each location on the REPS website.

The Day of Service events allow NEA members an opportunity to give back to our peers in the archival community. Volunteers donate their time and professional expertise at five New England repositories in need of improving access to their collections.

Remember -- today is the LAST DAY to reserve a spot.  Sign up to reserve your space and make sure each institution gets some volunteers.

To get involved or learn more about the benefits of volunteering at this event, contact Rose Oliveira (rose.roliveir@gmail.com).

NEA REPS 2nd Annual Day of Service!

It's that time of year again!

New England Archivists and the NEA Roundtable for Early Professionals and Students (REPS) are excited to announce the 2nd Annual NEA/REPS Day of Service (#REPSserves15). As an opportunity for NEA members to give back to the archival community, volunteers will donate their time and professional expertise at five New England repositories in need of improving access to their collections.

On Saturday, October 17, 2015, volunteers can choose to spend the day helping out at

    -- History Project: Documenting LGBTQ Boston (MA), Space Available

    -- USS Constitution Museum (Charlestown, MA) Spaces Available

    -- Worcester Refugee Archive (MA) Spaces Available

    -- Colchester Historical Society (CT) Spaces Available

    -- Hardwick Historical Society (VT)  FULL

Read about the projects on the REPS NEA Blog

Don't delay -- the LAST DAY to reserve a spot is Tuesday October 13th. Sign up today to reserve your space.

To get involved or learn more about the benefits of volunteering at this event, contact Rose Oliveira (rose.roliveir@gmail.com).

The NEA Newsletter is looking for volunteers to serve as session reporters for the Fall Meeting on Saturday, November 7, 2015 at AS220 Studios and the Providence Public Library in Providence, Rhode Island.

Session Reporters will write a summary of their assigned session for publication in the January 2016 issue of the Newsletter.  One reporter is needed for each of the sessions in bold below. For presenter bios and a full schedule for the day, visit: http://newenglandarchivists.org/Fall-2015:

MORNING WORKSHOPS **please note that registration for the morning workshops is full; only those who are registered to attend the morning workshops may volunteer to report on these sessions
-- Activity 1 - Cyanotype with Sam Thompson,  Photographer, Rhode Island
-- Activity 2 - Wet plate collodion with Brett Henrikson, Photographer, Rhode Island
-- Activity 3 - History and current use of 19th C photographic techniques with Martha Mahard, Professor of Practice, Simmons College, Boston, MA and Kathleen Deep, Collections Coordinator, Univ. of Connecticut, Storrs, CT

AFTERNOON SYMPOSIUM
-- Symposium Opening Talk: Jane Turano-Thompson, Independent Scholar and Collector of 19th C Photography
-- Description/Cataloging of 19th Century Photos with Robert Burton, Photograph Cataloger, Harvard University Libraries
-- Identification of 19th Century Photos with Matthew Mason, Archivist and Eve Neiger, Processing Archivist, Beinecke Library, Yale University

Sessions will be assigned on a “first-come, first-served” basis.  Please complete your registration prior to volunteering as a session reporter. Student reporters are welcome.

Reports should be approximately 500 to 600 words, and submissions are due by December 1, 2015.

If you are certain that you will be attending the Fall Meeting and are interested in reporting, or if you have any questions, please contact Carolyn Hayes, Session Reports/Internet Tidbits Editor, at carolyn_hayes@hms.harvard.edu.

Thank you, and I look forward to seeing you all in Providence!

Carolyn Hayes
Session Reports/Internet Tidbits Editor
NEA Newsletter

NEA seeks interested individual(s) to assist the Massachusetts History Conference (MHC) in planning an archives track at their annual conference in June 2016.

The Massachusetts History Conference's purpose is to support public local history. The conference features panel discussions and workshops on topics of interest to small museums and other historical organizations and people who work with them. Over 100 people, representing public history in the state of Massachusetts, attend this event at The College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA every year. Recent speakers at the MHC have included Professor Laurel Thatcher Ulrich, filmmaker Ian Cheney, Professor Jill Lepore, and author Ray Raphael. The 2016 MHC, as it did in 2015, will feature an archives track within the program and has  again given New England Archivists the opportunity to organize this portion. This is an incredible opportunity to help shape a vital and interesting conference and advocate for the role of archivists and archives to our region's public historians.  

Planning for the Conference has just begun and will conclude in early June (2016) with the Conference itself. If you are interested in this opportunity or have further questions, please contact NEA President Colin Lukens (colin_lukens@harvard.edu). Deadline to express interest is Tuesday, October 13, 2015.  

Further information on the MHC can be found here: http://masshumanities.org/programs/mass-history/history-conference/

NOVEMBER IS ELECTION MONTH

Mark your calendars now for the 2015 NEA Election: November 2nd through 13th. During October, we will introduce you to our round of candidates (listed alphabetically). Or you can check out the candidate's statements at anytime on the NEA website. Private and secure voting will take place online through votenet.com.  Please look for an e-mail on November 2nd with your unique user name and password to vote.

Vice President/President Elect
   -- Karen Adler Abramson
   -- Ellen Doon

Secretary
   -- Caitlin Birch
   -- Adrienne Pruitt

Representative-at-Large
   -- Abigail Cramer
   -- Liz Francis
   -- Ben Johnson
   -- Betsy J. Spekke

A couple of other important things to know….

To be eligible to vote, you must renew your membership by noon on October 26th. Please review your email address in the membership directory and make sure it is correct.  It is this email address that will be linked to your ballot.