UNG libraries preserve history of university and community

The University of North Georgia (UNG) Libraries' faculty and staff members work hard to preserve university history as well as local and regional history. In observance of Georgia Archives Month in October, several events are planned to remind everyone to preserve their own history.

UNG is home to two special archive collections. The first collection, located on the Dahlonega Campus, mainly holds information, documents and photographs that pertain to the history of UNG and the Appalachian region. The second collection, located in Gainesville, contains materials related its founding as Gainesville Junior College in 1964 and the poultry industry in the area.

Preserving university documents and local history is a priority for Allison Galloup, special collections and digital initiatives librarian. Her records include documents from 1873, the year that UNG was founded in Dahlonega as North Georgia Agricultural College.

Throughout October, the UNG community and the public will have opportunities to observe Georgia Archives Month through several university events. Galloup said she is planning the events so that people in the area know their history is being remembered.

"I want people to, especially with the workshops, feel empowered to save their own materials and document their own family history," she said. "I want them to know their history matters and that it is important to us."

On Oct. 2, the month will kick off with a unique national Twitter event in which individuals may tweet questions and receive answers from a professional archivist by using #askanarchivist. If users also tweet @unglibraries, they'll receive a response from UNG libraries, which allows for users to ask more specific questions that pertain to the history of the area.

Next, a workshop called "Preserving Your Family Papers" will be held on the Dahlonega and Gainesville campuses. Galloup plans to show those in attendance the proper ways to store and keep old family pictures and documents.

"It's about dealing with those records that you own that you want to make sure are safe," she said. "What should you do with those photos that you've cleaned out of the attic? What temperature should you store them at? We'll talk about those things in the workshop."

The workshop will be at noon on Oct. 4 in the Hosch Library Room 134 on the Gainesville Campus, and at noon on Oct. 11 in the Library Technology Center Room 382 on the Dahlonega Campus.

Of course, it's not October without a good ghost story. Rosann Kent, director of the Appalachian Studies Center at UNG, will tell the story of West Virginia's Greenbrier Ghost. Her lecture, called "Haints, Headstones, and Setting up with the Dead," will take place at 6 p.m. Oct. 22, in the Library Technology Center Room 382 on the Dahlonega Campus.

Additionally, Dr. Kristine Stilwell, reference services librarian and assistant professor, will host a lecture at 6 p.m. Oct. 29, in Hosch Library Room 134 titled "Death and Material Culture." Stilwell's lecture will explore the material aspects that have been historically associated with death.

To finish up the month, UNG libraries will sponsor a transcribe-a-thon at 12:30 p.m. Oct. 31 on all five campuses. Transcription is a critical aspect of the preservation of historical documents. During the event, attendees will learn how to transcribe and practice transcribing in a group setting.

That event will take place at the Library Technology Center Room 163 in Dahlonega, Hosch Library Room 221 in Gainesville, Cumming Room 262, Oconee Room 313, and Blue Ridge Room 107.

For more information, visit the Georgia Archives Month site.