We’re grateful for our incredible team of volunteers that help us keep the Patricia Lennon Archives Center running. If you think you would like to join us, here is a brief description of the kinds of help that we most need. Each of these will give you a unique view of archival work but we would encourage you to try your hand at a blend of the tasks, so that you get the broadest experience:
- Reference and research—We get lots of requests for research assistance at the Archives Center. When you start, the archivist and borough historians will give you an introduction to the most commonly used resources at the archive, show you how to use the catalogs, and then assign you a question that someone has asked—the archivist and the historians will, of course, be on hand to help you ferret out the answers that researchers need. Should we run low on reference questions from individual clients, then we would appreciate your help researching and writing subject guides, blog posts, articles for the Bulletin, and so on.
- Transcription of original manuscript/ handwritten documents—Transcribing one of our many handwritten documents is a critical job at the archives, because even something as simple as a typed electronic version can be an immense help to people who would have difficulty reading the original. Not only will you be helping to make our collections more accessible, but you will find that you gain greater facility with cursive (!) and that transcription is a great way to work closely with a unique piece of the past.
- Digitization and cataloging of our photographic collections—One of our long-term goals is to digitize our extensive photographic collections. This requires scanning original photographs at a very high resolution, creating lower resolution versions for distribution, and cataloging the photographs. With this job, you will have the opportunity to view a great many unique photographs—ranging from the mid-19th century to almost the present day—and learn about the appropriate care and handling of photographic prints.
- Creation of an index for the back issues of the Historical Society of Haddonfield’s newsletter, The Bulletin—Over the decades, writers have covered a wide range of topics for our newsletter. We would like to index previous Bulletin issues, so that future writers can better topics the magazine has covered—as well as what gaps there are in coverage.
If one or more of these jobs sound like they might appeal to you, or if you have an idea for a project, please drop the archivist a line ([email protected]) or complete the HSH volunteer form. (Note that there are many other opportunities for volunteer work in other parts of the Historical Society of Haddonfield—and these are listed on the “Volunteer and Internship Opportunities” page.)