: i
Society archives
rekindle history
By John Kalkowski
A copy of a historic document is as valuable as the document
itself, according to James Potter, Director of Archives at the
Nebraska State Historical Society.
In the archives at the State Historical Society Museum at 15th
and R Sts., Potter said there are 17,000 microfilm rolls of
documents ranging from governmental and public record to almost
all Nebraska weekly newspapers.
The archives at the State Historical Society contain information
w'uch relates to all of Nebraska's history, he said.
When the Legislature passed a law in 1905, it made the State
Historical Society the official state archivist. Now, Potter said, no
public record can be destroyed without the State Historical Society
having a chance to file it or microfilm it.
In their manuscript division, the archivists collect personal
letters, congressional records, business records and other private
items of historical interest to Nebraskans.
The State Historical Society also has been collecting Nebraska
newspapers-since 1890. The newspapers are donated by private
citizens, according to Potter. The society films 232 newspapers.
When his department collects enough copies of a newspaper,
they begin microfilming, he said. Potter added that because the
newspapers arc donated, there are often gaps in the issues which
are collected. In some cases, the gaps cannot be filled, he said.
Still, the newspapers keep coming in and the State Historical
Society is having a difficult time keeping up with the microfilming
of the papers, he said.
The State Historical Society has been doing its own
microfilming since 1951, Potter said. It has one microfilm camera
which is kept busy filming newspapers eight hours a day, he said.
The filmed documents are easier to preserve, space saving and
easier to distribute, he said.
According to Potter, space is a major problem for the archives.
In some of the stacks, records and documents are spilling over, he
said.
The documents require certain environmental controls to keep
them from perishing and are kept under lock and key, he said.
Potter said he hopes the present museum can be used entirely
for archives in the future. The State Historical Society may move
its museum closer to the state capitol, he said.
Being close to the university is an ideal location for the archives,
according to Potter.
The archives, although open to the general public, are generally
used for scholarly research. He added that they receive many
requests from the public for such things as aiding in establishing
the geneology of a family.
Hit l, II 1J at
, "' I ppt -
The Kennard House, 1627 H St., home of Nebraska's first
secretary of state, is operated by the State Historical Society
. . . Historical Society
Continued from p. 9
But the museums are not the Society's only contact with
Nebraska's people, or even persons outside of Nebraska, according
to Kivett.
As he thumbed through his mail, Kivett displayed letters from
all over the country requesting aid from the Society. Utters came
from a high school in New York and individuals in Illinois,
California and Michigan.
A letter from a university professor in Germany asked for
information about Rose and Winetoon, Neb., two Indian villages.
Another letter asked for information on building sod houses.
That letter came from a Peace Corps volunteer in Yemen. He was
looking for an economical means of providing housing there.
A major concern of the Society is offering educational
experiences to Nebraska's youth, Frantz said. But, he added, they
are trying to reach even those who cannot come to the museum.
As one of its projects, the Socicty.constructs portable displays
of historic interest which can be loaned to the schools. They also
have a program called Young Historians to increase interest in
history among Nebraska youth.
UP coi lection
The State Historical Society almost never buys any of its
historical items, Kivett said. It relies on donations from the general
public.
Recently, the Union Pacific Railroad donated its enti e archives
to the Society, Kivett said the railroad's archives are an important
addition to Nebraska history.
Much of written Nebraska history is available through Society
publications. The State Historical Society publishes Nebraska
History, a quarterly magazine, a newsletter, and various books
dealing with Nebraska history. Being reprinted are copies of
Andreas' History of the State of Nebraska, originally published in
1883.
page 10
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daily nebraskan
Wednesday, march 19, 1975