NEWS RELEASE

Library Contact News Calendar of Events Friends of the OSU Library

Preserving the History of US Agriculture & Rural Life

October 25, 2005

For Immediate Release

STILLWATER - The OSU Library has reached the half way point in a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. The project, “Preserving the History of United States Agriculture & Rural Life,” is coordinated by Cornell University on behalf of the United States Agricultural Information Network and in cooperation with other land-grant universities. The purpose of the project is to identify the literature of each state that documents and describes the agricultural history and rural life between 1820 and 1945, to improve access to that literature via enhanced cataloging, and to preserve the most essential materials. OSU was awarded Oklahoma’s segment of the project.

This long-term national project, currently in its 10th year of NEH funding, has provided funding for 25 states to participate. The OSU Library received an initial grant of $31,059 to compile a bibliography of Oklahoma publications from 1820-1945 that describe agricultural and rural life. The items in the bibliography are reviewed and ranked by Oklahoma history experts to help determine the material that will be slated for preservation. OSU will apply for additional funding in 2007 to gather together, coordinate and preserve the materials.

OSU Librarians Vicki Phillips and Heather K. Moberly are co-Primary Investigators for OSU’s portion of the grant. Phillips said, “As a native Oklahoman, I have been interested in Oklahoma history for most of my adult life. My academic background is in history (BA and MA), and I have worked with information about Oklahoma and agriculture throughout my tenure at OSU. This has been an interesting and informative project. It’s helped me gain more expertise in the early agricultural literature of our state.”

Phillips and Moberly began the project by compiling a bibliography of material about the state that fit the grant’s criteria. According to Moberly, “We were fortunate to have a subject specialist like Vicki working on this phase of the project. Her expertise in this area allowed her to pre-screen the material item by item and eliminate inappropriate pieces early.”

An expert panel then reviewed the bibliography to select items for preservation at a later time. John Phillips, Head, OSU Library Government Documents, was one of the four Oklahoma history experts on the panel. OSU was the first institution to provide the panel with an online bibliography and to accept its feedback online.
For the next step, Vicki Phillips and Moberly will analyze the rankings and format the bibliography for the final grant submission. Upon completion, the bibliography will be available to the public through the OSU Library website.

Phillips said, “The bibliography will be a significant addition to historical research as we move to the centennial year of statehood. Oklahoma is a very young state, and one that has roots in agriculture and petroleum. This project will highlight agricultural history in Oklahoma prior to 1945. It will be another piece of the patchwork of the history of this unique state.”

-###-

Share this Story: What is this?

del.icio.us Digg Facebook Google Reddit Yahoo

 

Fall 2005 News Releases Return to Library News