A Capital Blog

Farewell Virginia and Katharine

Posted on June 4, 2012 by Lori Schwartz

L-R, Virginia and Katharine

Virginia Blake (MLIS, 2011) and Katharine Klein (MA-Public History, 2012) recently had their last days at SCPC. They are off to start their careers and of course, we wish them the best of luck! Virginia worked for us for three years, as a graduate assistant and, for the last year, as our staff assistant. She is the new City Archivist of Savannah. (Savannah is lucky!!) Katharine was with us for two years and graduated last month. She is in the midst of her job hunt and we all hope it goes quickly. She definitely deserves it! Watch out museums world.

Katharine and Virginia helped SCPC run smoothly during their tenures here. They helped us advertise for programs, worked at events, pitched in when new materials arrived, wrote research guides, edited catalog entries, and basically did whatever we needed…. We knew we could count on them.

L-R, Katharine and Virginia at their desks

In addition, Virginia worked on the collections of Grady Patterson, Bud Ferillo, Mary Kelly, Edward Hull, Candy Waites, Alex Harvin, Nick Theodore, the League of Women Voters, Joe Wilson, and John Spratt. Whew, she was busy! It is particularly bittersweet to say goodbye to her since she is our last student assistant to ever work at our old building, the Pearle Warehouse. Our students who have come along since then don’t have a clue what they missed! At Pearle, Virginia helped me organize and inventory scrapbooks, oversized materials, and lots of other items during our year-long preparation to move into the Hollings Library in 2010.

Katharine also stayed busy during her two years here. In fact, she worked so efficiently sometimes, we wouldn’t have minded if she slowed down! (just kidding) She worked on the collections of Floyd Spence, Joe Wilson, John Spratt, Alex Harvin, William Jennings Bryan Dorn, the League of Women Voters, Nancy Moore, and Kate Salley Palmer. She also contributed to our exhibits program. She brainstormed and drew up ideas to make the galleries more interactive. She created the Life in the Mansion online exhibit and curated A Women’s Work for the lobby of Thomas Cooper Library. She also helped me with the design work for our recent South Carolina’s Mad “Men” exhibit. She undoubtedly did even more that I’m forgetting to mention.

We will miss them but know they are going to have successful careers! We love our students! (can you tell?)

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“Our Three Words”

Posted on May 31, 2012 by Lori Schwartz

Check out the video — “Our Three Words” — made by and for staff and faculty members of USC Libraries! Herb, Dorothy, Kate, Virginia, Laura, Katharine, Caitlin and I are ALL in it! (See if you can spot Dorothy — she’s sort of hidden.)

This video was shown originally at the 2012 Library Appreciation Luncheon that I wrote about last week. Now, it’s streamed live for your viewing pleasure if you want a glimpse into the personalities behind USC Libraries. Almost every single department participated in the making of this video (sometimes more than once). The whole video is about 9 minutes. If you want to see SCPC’s contribution, scroll to almost the end. We’re around the 8-minute mark.

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212 Degrees

Posted on May 18, 2012 by Lori Schwartz

The University Libraries held their 2nd Annual Faculty and Staff Appreciation Luncheon yesterday in the Hollings Library Program Room. Around 110 library employees enjoyed a deli buffet; listened to the wonderful LaNae Briggs Budden, Dean of Students at Columbia College, encourage us all to operate at 212 degrees and go the extra mile in our jobs; and watched a video, Our Three Words, made especially for the luncheon.

Lori welcoming the assembled crowd to the luncheon. If you look closely, you will spy Herb, Dorothy, Kate and Katharine in the crowd! Photo by Kathy Dowell

Kate (our Kate!) and Jeffrey (from Rare Books) holding up their luncheon favors. Photo by Kathy Dowell.

See more photos from the event at http://www.flickr.com/photos/41318675@N05/sets/72157629774467576/. Watch SCPC’s segment for the luncheon video! (apologies if it plays sideways on your computer) — SCPC’s Three Words

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SCPC Graduate Assistants to Spend Summer in Washington

Posted on May 14, 2012 by Kate Moore

We were delighted to learn recently that both Laura Litwer and Caitlin Mans, two of our excellent graduate assistants, will be spending June and July in Washington, D.C., where they have secured paid internships.

Caitlin Mans and Laura Litwer

Laura will work as a Reference Services Intern at the National Anthropological Archives, a unit of the National Museum of Natural History located in Suitland, MD. Laura’s duties will include assisting patrons, retrieving and refiling boxes, interpreting catalog records and finding aids, creating inventories, and providing instruction on how to properly handle archival material. She will also assist with the Archives’ Summer Institute of Museum Anthropology, June 25-July 20, which trains graduate anthropology students in doing museum research.

Caitlin will be at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, working in their Division of Home and Community Life. She will perform research for the biographies section of the Museum’s upcoming American Enterprise exhibit. Additionally, she will update object records and perform needed research for collections of prints and paintings.

These internships are highly competitive and we are proud that both ladies will gain such rich experience and look forward to hearing all about it when they return in August!

Contributed by Herb Hartsook

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Jane Lubchenco visits the Hollings Library

Posted on May 7, 2012 by Lori Schwartz

Jane Lubchenco, head of NOAA (the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), visited the Hollings Library on Friday for a graduation luncheon. The university couldn’t have chosen a better locale for the lunch. Why? Senator Hollings is known as the father of NOAA (he steered the oceans and coastal zone agency into existence in 1969-1970 while serving in the U.S. Senate) and a grant from NOAA helped build the Hollings Library (opened in 2010).

Ms. Lubchenco spoke to me of a meal she and the Senator shared a year or two ago, in which Hollings told her the story of the establishment of NOAA. She marveled at his memory as he recounted the story to her, complete with details of the wheeling and dealing that took place over forty years ago. She said with clear admiration for him that he spoke with passion about the oceans and conservation.

I showed Ms. Lubchenco an exhibit of four small traveling cases holding NOAA and oceans-related documents and photos from the Hollings Papers. In the first two cases, I tried to show Hollings’ efforts during the two-year campaign to establish NOAA through letters, speeches, and bills. Simply establishing an oceans agency wasn’t the only challenge; Hollings and others had to work out major issues with President Nixon and other powers on Capitol Hill. One issue–would NOAA be an independent agency and if not, where would it reside? One photo among all the photos on display is a favorite among the staff here. See if you can guess which one. You’ll have to look closely.

In the 3rd case, I included photos of Hollings receiving plaudits over the decades for his work on the oceans and the coastal zone. The 4th case (not pictured) held oceans material from some of our other collections. Given our great state’s location, you can be assured that a number of our collections have wonderful material to study if you’re researching anything related to coastal conservation efforts, marine mammals, ocean drilling, etc.

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How the collections framed my Thesis

Posted on April 20, 2012 by Lori Schwartz

After 10 months of researching and 4 months of writing, I finally finished my Master’s thesis!! The Sacrifices of the American Textile Industry and the Common Good focuses on the ever-changing notions of common good as the shifting nuanced idea influenced the sequence of events that culminated in the failure of the Textile Trade Enforcement Act of 1985 and the Textile and Apparel Trade Act of 1987, and the passage of the North American Free Trade Agreement in 1993. Although the idea to focus on the textile industry came from my internship with the National Museum of American History, it was the insightful and rich collections at SCPC that shaped my argument about protective legislation.

What you need to know is…Layoffs have been devastating to textile producing states such as South Carolina, especially to the communities that have high numbers of people employed in the industry. Considering the thousands affected by foreign competition and the constituent ccorrespondence sent to congressional offices between 1984 and 1994, I argue that southern politicians acted in the best interest of the textile community and their notion of the common good when they tried to enact protective legislation. Representative Butler Derrick and Senator Ernest F. Hollings recognized the threat to the common good in the early 1980s and spent the following two decades fighting to protect the textile community from the conflicting interests of the national community- even dividing themselves from textile executives during the passage of NAFTA!

There are dozens of correspondence folders in both collections- 21 folders of correspondence for the 1985 legislation in Derrick’s collection alone – that shed a personal light on a national problem. The insightful staff at SCPC graciously listened as I rambled on about textiles and offered useful suggestions and encouraging advice that led me to untapped resources. The collections at SCPC are rich in many ways and I can guarantee that your next paper or thesis can be found at SCPC!

~contributed by Katharine Klein

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Calling all researchers-National Archives Legislative Fellowship

Posted on April 9, 2012 by Lori Schwartz

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 4, 2012

National Archives Announces Legislative Archives Fellowship for 2012

Washington, DC. . . . Archivist of the United States David S. Ferriero announced today the National Archives Legislative Archives Fellowship for 2012. Last year Mr. Ferriero created the Fellowship to support scholarly work in United States history, based on research in the records of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. The Foundation for the National Archives generously provided a total stipend of $10,000 for the Fellowship.

Applications for the 2012 Fellowship will be accepted by email until midnight EDT May 16, 2012. The recipient will be selected by July 1, 2012. Research proposals will be considered on any topic requiring research in the historical records of Congress housed at the National Archives Center for Legislative Archives. The records of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives support research in a wide range of topics and subfields including social policy, law-making, leadership, representation (petitioning, constituents, lobbying) and the context in which Congress operates (inter-governmental; political, social, and economic climate).

The Fellow will be supported by the Center for Legislative Archives staff and will have the opportunity to consult with the House and Senate History offices. The Fellow will be expected to make an initial presentation to the National Archives staff and local historians on the proposed plan of work and a second presentation on research finding at the end of the Fellowship tenure. The recipient will also maintain a blog about his/her Fellowship experience.

Fellowship Details

Amount: $10,000

Tenure: The Fellowship requires a minimal residency of one month at the Center for Legislative Archives and additional research in records that complement the Center’s holdings.

Eligibility: Ph.D. candidates whose dissertations have been approved by the application deadline and individuals who have received their Ph.D. within the last five years.

Instructions to apply for the Fellowship are posted at: http://www.archives.gov/legislative/research/fellowship.html
* * *
For press information, contact the National Archives Public Affairs staff at 202-357-5300.

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Day of celebrations

Posted on April 5, 2012 by Lori Schwartz

It was a memorable day here at SCPC.

Herb was excited about it being Opening Day of MLB (he wasn’t the only one) and the first day of the Masters. One of our students found out she got a summer internship. Another student defended her thesis yesterday and can now look forward to graduation with a little more ease. Yup, smiles all around.

Meanwhile, we held a celebration for Graduate Assistants Week with some cupcakes and yummy tea. We gave Laura, Katharine & Caitlin certificates of appreciation (suitable for framing!). We gave Virginia one, too. She’s been a staff member for almost a year but she was an awesome grad student before that. We are so very lucky to have these hard-working and smart students. SCPC wouldn’t run without them. They each have a sense of humor, too, which comes in handy in this job…and in life, don’t ya think?

At our celebration, we also redeemed Easter eggs for prizes.

After the hunt — with our eggs!

And we’re off. The hunt begins.

Say what?

Herb’s wife, Melinda, thought we might like to have an Easter egg hunt, and so we did! Herb came in early this morning and hid 24 plastic eggs (w/ candy inside) around our processing room. Dorothy, Kate & I, plus the aforementioned student honorees, set out to hunt them down.

We found them everywhere–high and low–in our shredded paper box, under the typewriter cover, under a stuffed eagle’s claw, inside a trophy, behind a cartoon, hanging out with some frames…. Seven of the eggs were numbered. If you found two numbered ones, you had to put one back. Thus, everyone got a prize!

When we traded them in, we unwrapped all sorts of different things. I got 75 butterfly tattoos. Katharine got a cool, colorful fan (it was nifty). Dorothy got a bouquet of lollipops (or something similar). Candy all around, of course. You get the point.

All in all, a fabulous time. Isn’t our boss cool?

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Catesby’s Page Turning

Posted on April 2, 2012 by Lori Schwartz

I have the distinct pleasure of being the first official page turner of Rare Book’s first edition of Mark Catesby’s Natural History of the Carolina, Florida and the Bahama Islands. I was overjoyed when asked to meet Elizabeth Sudduth and the rest of the RBSC staff at 11 a.m. in the Brittain Gallery of the Hollings Special Collections Library to participate in a special event.

Little did I know, I would become a part of history. I am exaggerating of course but it is nice to know that I was the first student to actively turn the pages of such a rare book. The set, known as the Gibbes-Robinson Catesby was donated in 2009 by Mrs. Susan Gibbes Robinson, who recently passed away. It is on display from April 1-11.

At 11 a.m. each weekday, from April 2nd-April 11th, the pages will be turned in each volume to celebrate Mrs. Robinson’s gift and honor her instructions to do so when we exhibit the books. Come by at 11 each day to see the page turning or stop in any time to view the volumes.

-Contributed by Katharine Klein

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What do you spy in our workroom?

Posted on March 29, 2012 by Lori Schwartz

Tour groups walk through our main workroom on a weekly basis. We tell the visitors the basics of SCPC (we have 100 collections from congressman, governors…20th century…etc. and so on) and then, if we have time, we show them a few fun objects on display in our workroom. Or, they point them out first. Below are objects that belong to collections and aren’t on display in our gallery, but we like them too much to store them on a shelf in our stacks. So, we display them in our workroom and I present them here for your enjoyment.

This gavel commemorates John West’s service presiding over the SC Senate, as part of his duties as Lt. Governor. We have a wide range of gavels in our collections but this is the granddaddy of them all! Dorothy is its keeper. Lesson? Don’t cross Dorothy! (kidding, she’s sweet)
This cow is a beloved stuffed friend of SCPC. The Inez Tenenbaum campaign for U.S. Senate in 2004 used it for motivation. It sat in their campaign office and whenever a set amount of $ was raised, the office would set it off. The cow would dance up and down, gleefully yelling “Moo! Moo!” to the delight of all.

We used to set it off for visitors regularly. Sadly, the cow lost some battery power recently and my surgery to repair it was unsuccessful. One day, hopefully, the cow will reign again with “moo” power.

People often see this framed collection of memorabilia from John Drummond’s WWII service and their eyes get a little wide, thanks to “Raid Hot Mama.” Hey, we want to tell them, this was normal for that period!! We think (we hope?) they already know that but Raid Hot Mama still draws many wide-eyed looks.

Mrs. Edwards carried this purse around during her husband’s gubernatorial campaign in 1974. I think it’s cute. Herb had this to say about the purse, “I had to talk her into [donating] it, telling her how much I valued it as a memento of her activity during that campaign. It is one of my favorite pieces of ephemera and I show it to every lady who tours SCPC.”

This poster was created for a college campus fundraiser during Bob Inglis’ campaign for re-election to Congress in 2008. To accompany it, Inglis & crew created a video “Get Down with Bob” (please watch; you won’t be sorry). To say that we, the staff of SCPC, love the poster and video isn’t expressing our affection enough.

In the video, Inglis tries out some disco moves in a dance studio in full costume–wig included–while his staff helpfully supplies the narrative. For example: “Bob doesn’t have two left feet–He’s a Republican. Bob has two right feet.” (insert groan here) “He’s known as a hustler…I mean, he can do the hustle.”

This Wheaties box might be the #1 thing people point out on tours in our workroom. The color, undoubtedly, has something to do with it. Fritz Hollings received this Wheaties box from the Science Coalition in 2001 for being a “Champion of Science.” Hollings was involved in funding countless scientific efforts through his committee assignments as a U.S. Senator.

This is an amazing framed photo from the Mark Sanford collection. It captures the authentic smiles and cheer around the signing of Boeing legislation in 2009. My photo of this frame doesn’t do it justice as I couldn’t control for the light hitting it (even with the lights off–we have too much natural light around here!!) and I didn’t want to take it off the wall. But I hope you get an idea of why we like this photo so much.

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