If We Were Without A History: The Preservation of Women’s History -- Collection, Development & Continuing Importance

Authors

Nathalie Belkin, Palmer School of Library and Information SciencesFollow

Publication Date

2015

Abstract

This article examines the important role that continued collection and preservation of women’s history plays in contemporary archival scholarship. Women's history is a vast field, but its collection and development has not garnered the same amount of attention as that of men’s history. Covering collection attempts, repositories and preservation practices from the 1930s, through and including today, this paper analyzes both the successes and failures of preserving women’s history for continuing access, scholarship and research, underscoring the importance of these collections. In order to accomplish this, extensive reading and study of active collections and repositories specifically geared towards women’s materials and history has been done. Research included the conceptual work and implementation of archives including Smith and Iowa Colleges, as well as the women behind these collections. This paper also looks at newer and emerging archives and women’s history collections, including oral history projects and web-only repositories, emphasizing the importance of continuing to preserve women’s history.