Local Studies Librarian rewind – Winter 1996

With Tony’s recent article I thought I’d look back at the first couple of editions after I joined the Local Studies Group back in 1996 (19 years ago???). I was at Aberystwyth University at the time, doing the postgrad librarianship course. I must admit I knew very little about Local Studies at the time, but though joining LSG and then doing the Local Studies module I realised that this was an opportunity to use my interest in history. Looking back at this edition it was interesting to see how things had changed, but many underlying questions/subjects are still here.

Vol 15 (2) Winter 1996

The main thrust of the journal was technology, with the features on digital databases, computer catalogues, internet websites and projects prominent.

The first article is on The Durham Record, a database which took advantage of the latest technology to bring together 10,000 digitised photos, historic OS maps and the Sites & Monuments Records (now Historic Environment Record). For my dissertation I looked at the use of audio-visual material in Local Studies, so it was new projects such as these that I looked at.

Although it was 20 years ago it still seems quite advanced, with touchscreen, GIS features allowing you to search via a map, and multiple ways of searching. Limits of the time meant that it had to be viewed on one of 4 standalone machines located through the county, but it was an early groundbreaking attempt at harnessing computers to allow better access to Local Studies resources. The article stresses the benefits of bringing these sources together, which we now take for granted, and all customers were interviewed said it was easy to use, an achievement considering many would be unfamiliar with computers.

Looking online today it seems that The Durham Record is still available in different formats on the web. The Durham Record itself http://www.durham.gov.uk/durhamrecord contains the images, whilst the SMR information is now on the Keys to the Past website, along with Northumberland’s HER http://www.keystothepast.info/Pages/Home.aspx. It is good to know that all that work never disappeared, which occasionally has happened.

Heritage Lottery Fund

At this stage HLF was still just a couple of years old. Nowadays most of us will have been involved, but as many wouldn’t have done in 1996 The Local Studies Librarian gave examples of relevant projects which had received funding. These included the new Surrey History Centre & The Society of Genealogists’ cataloguing project.

These were also the early days of the internet. Five key family history sites were mentioned in an article, including GENUKI & Roots Surname List, now ancestry, Find My past or even FamilySearch at this stage. It was interesting too to read that Devon were publishing a journal which would only be available digitally, a development that it very common now with groups such as the LSG looking to reduce printing and postage costs, but hadn’t realised it started so early. A further article told of a CD-ROM containing Open University dissertations, some which would be of interest to local and family historians. With developments in computerises catalogues it was also reported that some libraries who didn’t have computerised catalogues of their Local Studies collections were looking at creating these, although in some cases different collections within the same county had been catalogued in completely different ways, making the creation of a uniform catalogue a headache.

News In Brief Section

• With the Norfolk Library fire only just having taken place it was reported that 17,000 items had been donated to help replace lost Local Studies items. The main problem was acquiring rare items lost, and recataloguing since the card catalogue has been burnt. A couple of my friends subsequently had their first professional posts on this cataloguing project.
• Yeovil had a Local Historian in Residence scheme. The local history society helped the library by running a weekly helpdesk, precursor of volunteer help which many libraries rely on today.
• It was reported that the first meeting of the Public Services Quality Group (PSQG) had met to discuss issues in archives and local studies. I’m quite familiar with it today carrying out surveys of archives at 18 month intervals, but hadn’t realised that it included Local Studies in the beginning. Anyone know why Local Studies didn’t continue being included within PSQG?
• And entries were encouraged for the Alan Ball Award for local history publications, and the Dorothy McCulla Award, both of which still run today. For the latter people were asked to contact Philip Thomas, LSG Treasurer, who sadly passed away last year.