Digitizing Primary Sources: Oceanside History

Assignment Summary

For this assignment, we had to identify primary sources covering a topic on local history.

From the assignment instructions.

Choose a topic that is well represented in your libraries such as local history or a historic event that took place nearby.

Locate a minimum of five primary sources in your library on your topic by looking through books, photographs, and other collections. Talk with the reference librarian to find out if there are any artifacts on your topic. Try to locate at least one three dimensional artifacts on your topic.

Our job was to scan and photograph the items before uploading them to our portfolio.

Reflection

This project taught me a number of things about primary sources and managing collections, including the importance of taking care when handling primary sources (using gloves) and keeping everything organized so it can be managed and utilized by patrons for research.

I also learned how primary sources can be used to teach about a subject area. In this case, it was the history of an important building in Oceanside. This project is very similar to how patrons will utilize primary sources for research, whether it would be for grad school or an English paper on an author. Scanning the documents and material taught me an essential skill for preserving primary sources. Due to their age or condition, there will be many items that can’t be handled or accessed by patrons. By scanning them we can add them to a digital collection and allow people to access them for research. The digitization of libraries is a current trend in libraries. Scanning these materials is an important part of making these materials accessible in digital collections.

My goal is to work with local libraries to digitize their collections and make them accessible to the public. While the Oceanside Library has digitized many items, there are several items I noticed which haven’t been digitized yet. I think these would be of interest to people and would like to help make that happen.

I have enclosed some resources for learning more about Oceanside's History.

I chose the development of the Oceanside Civic Center as the topic for my local historical event. Construction began in the late ’80s and it was completed in 1990. Today it serves several functions including the location for city hall and the adjourning library. Which is where I found my primary sources; the archives of the Oceanside Public Library.

I found the planning designs for the civic center in the library archives and selected it as my artifact. It includes maps of the building and the surrounding area in Oceanside. Along with man of the individuals involved from city councilmembers to architects.

An article from Inside Oceanside Chamber of Commerce Magazine from August 1986. The article reports on bond sales which have helped alleviate the costs of the project.