day 01: the beginning

Today was the first day of my internship at George Washington University at the Special Collections Research Center in Washington, DC. Since this is a continuation of the internship I worked for my Archives class this past spring semester, I already had an idea of what to expect.

Jenny requested that I contribute to the SCRC blog about the work and experience I've had thus far. I wrote a fair amount on my experience during the initial 40 hours and she posted it online! Please feel free to view my blog post on The Riggs Family papers. I'm planning on writing more blogs about the project as I continue my internship throughout the summer.

The project that I've been working on is a second donation from the Riggs family. For those of you not up to date on your local history, the Riggs family has been a prominent family in Washington, DC for the last two hundred years. They are widely known for the establishment and success of Riggs Bank. This collection was donated in 10 various sized boxes (9.5 linear feet) which included papers, photographs and artifacts that relate to the family and not the bank.

Throughout the spring semester I surveyed and recorded the items of each box and developed a processing plan. I first began processing correspondences to/from John Beverley Riggs until I finished the required hours for my Archives class. I spent the remainder of my first day processing more correspondences that were written in August of 1945. I remove each letter from their envelope, flatten the letter and place both papers inside the folder. Each folder has been labeled with the call number, series number, sub series, box number, folder number, heading and date written (or post mark). Occasionally there are news clippings inside each letter which I photocopy onto acid free paper and replace the original clipping in the folder with its corresponding letter. It is difficult for me to throw away these clippings knowing they are authentic! But the point of this collection is to maintain its relevance to the letter. There are a small handful of letters left and I hope to have them all processed soon!