Week Two: The History Harvest as Community-Engaged, "Hands-On" History

The History Harvest: Origins & Methodology

    The "History Harvest" and it's origins have been in debate since the first one originated in the early 2000s, with Dr. Patrick D. Jones and Dr. William G. Thomas, III, at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln coining the term in 2010. The History Harvest began out of a teaching goal to educate students on the collection of the people's history. Educators came up with a solution to begin a collaborative relationship with communities and their history that wasn't on the basis of extracting information, but rather on the collection and digitalization of communal memory and history (University of Nebraska at Lincoln, 2010). 

    Emerging into the 21st century, we live in a world that is increasingly marked by the evolution of the digital age and experience a narrative of the victors and popular, minimizing the story of the communal experience. History Harvests employ strategic methodology that maximizes the experience and realities that major events in history often overshadow the stories of communities. By engaging with the community in an effort to protect and recover a history that could be lost in a generation. If Public History is the people's history, History Harvests are the front door to capturing and memorializing those stories; History Harvests are our greatest tool as public historians.

Bibliography

In order to understand the methodology, history, and importance of the History Harvest, an annotated bibliography of sources can prove to be an important unit to the overall understanding of the practice of collection.

History Harvest, Department of History, University of Nebraska at Lincoln

http://historyharvest.unl.edu/.

        Founders of the original History Harvest, the University of Nebraska hosts a site dedicated to the history, methodology, and theory behind the practice. They have multiple links that are designed for educators and students alongside a digital archive. This digital archive contains sources from their history harvests, giving examples to those who wish to replicate their work. 

William G. Thomas, Patrick D. Jones, and Andrew Witmer, “History Harvest: What Happens When                     Students Collect and Digitize the People’s History?”  AHA Perspectives on History, January                     2013.https://www.historians.org/publications-and-directories/perspectives-on-history/january-                    2013/history-harvests. 

         William G. Thomas, Patrick D. Jones, and Andrew Witmer released an article discussing the implications and importance of the History Harvest, giving guidelines to educators and those wanting to create their own to streamline efficiency; History Harvests are personal, quick, and community based. Each one will be different, emphasizing the community as a subject with it's own, unique needs. 

Sara Georgini, “Spring at the History Harvest,” The Junto: A Group Blog on Early American History,                 March 6, 2013. https://earlyamericanists.com/2013/03/06/spring-at-the-history-harvest

William Thomas and Patrick Jones, co-directors of History Harvest sit down with Sara Georgini to discuss the creation and evolution of the History Harvest. Siting sites like Ed Ayer's "The Valley of the Shadow Project," Thomas gives clarity to how the idea originated. The main ideas stem from issues that circulate with the History Harvest concept, discussing digitization, organization, and partnering with local organizations to effectively create a communal database. 

"'Each Item Tells a Human Story' at History Harvest," Orlando Sentinel, March 3, 2013.

        The Orlando Sentinel published a headliner titled "Each Item Tells a Human Story" under their history section in one of their March issues in 2013. The article discusses the UCF History Center and the active preservation of Sanford history, capturing memories of Algerine Miller from the Sanford Grammar school. Most importantly, it describes UCF's first "History Harvest," marking UCF in the pursuit of communal history.

Meghan Vance, “Engaging Communities to Preserve: The History Harvest as a Collaboration Model for            Digital Preservation,” The Signal – Digital Preservation,” Library of Congress, Sept. 4, 2013.                    https://blogs.loc.gov/thesignal/2013/09/engaging-communities-to-preserve-the-history-harvest-as-a-           collaboration-model-for-digital-preservation/.

        UCF Public History Student Meghan Vance documents her internship with E-Z Photo Scan, a member of the NDSA Outreach Group. She mentions the importance of her work in digitization, archives, and the creation of an open access database for primary sources. Challenges included manpower and funding, a common issue in the pursuit to memorialize a smaller community.

"Uniting Invisible Histories" (2015), Michigan State University

        https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B2UKakQZqFIUYllJTVJjWG9nZDg/view?                                                 usp=sharing&resourcekey=0-o_aYJCwyLYWpmtvWCPA2vw.

        Written in 2015, the "Uniting Invisible Histories" document is a proposal for the creation of a database dedicated to the collection of material gathered through the History Harvest concept. The site e=uses embedded metadata, allowing other partner institutions to use and create materials within the database for museum and projects within larger communities. 

Connie L. Lester, “Harvesting History: Democratizing The Past Through The Digitization Of Community        History,” ADHO 2016, Kraków, Poland, July 11, 2016 - July 16, 2016

       .https://dh-abstracts.library.virginia.edu/works/2584.

        Connie L. Lester created a article to promote the creation and publication of the RICHES™(Regional Initiative for Collecting History, Experiences, and Stories) project to promote the democratization and collection of public history in the digital realm. She highlights UCF's Oviedo History Harvest amongst others, describing the rich history of Florida that is available to Public Historians. Ultimately, the goal of RICHES is to create a student based population that is trained to create an interpretative narrative of history, learning digital tools and public history skills as they attend graduate school. 

"Connie L. Lester and Finding Regional History,” Reframing Digital Humanities: Conversations with               Digital Humanists, ed. Julian Chambliss. Lansing, MI: Michigan State University Libraries Open               Educational Resources, 2018.

       https://openbooks.lib.msu.edu/reframingdh/chapter/connie-l-lester-and-finding-regional-history/.

        Connie L. Lester continues her conversation regarding RICHES, notably commenting on it's expansion and continued goals. In comparison to other archives, RICHES seeks to be a connection of sources, allowing researchers to go further than just surface level work. Lester mentions the creation of the Book bag and Connections tool, allowing a new innovative generation to expand the project. 

Scot French, "Recovering the Past, Discovering the Future: Archive, Community, and Scholarship,"                   Keynote Address, Society of Florida Archivists Annual Meeting, May 11, 2022.

       https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1ga4us02-mSuzfH1z1dFHdDOvT-                                                    LRSHIX9QKSkF_FgbE/edit?usp=sharing.
        Scot French lead a Keynote address on the digitalization of history, focusing on the evolution and creation history harvests alongside the implications of a digital world. More so, his work is focused on the ZORA! festival and how digital history has made an impact on the public history of African Americans. He notes podcasts, class courses, and efforts regarding Eatonville to maintain and pursue a collective memory in African American history in the digital form.