Know Your Archives Series

Cara Burnidge

Now that RAAC2017 has come and gone,* summer is in full swing. For me, and I suspect many readers too, that means it’s time for archival research. Fortunately, we’ve accumulated a quite a few posts for those who might be researching for the first time or heading somewhere new. Here’s a round-up of what we’ve posted previously.

• Guy Aiken, American Friends Service Committee, Philadelpha
• John Turner, LDS Church History Library follow-up by Tom Simpson
• Michael Graziano, National Archives, College Park, Maryland 
• David Komline, Moravian Archives, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 
• Jonathan de Hertog, American Antiquarian Society
• Michael Pasquier, American Catholic Archives with reference to…

• University of Notre Dame Archives
• Archdiocese of New Orleans
• Archdiocese of Baltimore
• American Catholic Research Center
• Cushwa Center, & more!

• Moody Bible Institute
• Biola University
• Bob Jones
• American Baptist Archives (Atlanta)
• Fuller
• Wheaton/Billy Graham Center

• Southern Baptist Historical Library & Archives
• International Pentecostal Holiness Church 
• Virginia Baptist Library

For those unable or uninterested in heading to an archive, contributors have highlighted some digital sources:

• Sarah Dees, “Digital Sources for the Study of Native American Religions“

• A Sarah Dees bonus post, “Haunted by the Archive,” reflects on her experience encountering Ghost Dance references in her research
• Sarah isn’t the only contributor reflecting on the material and process of research. Jennifer Graber also offers reflections on the study of Native American religions from her time at the Oklahoma Historical Society.

Now that you’ve found your archive and/or your material, you might want to consider what comes next. Mike Graziano wrote about his archival workflow in “Research Tools and the Dissertation“

While we’re on the subject of archives, if you’re interested in engaging students through archival work, Emily Clark has some posts that may help: “Taking Classes to the Archives” and “Students in the Archives.”

If you’re spending some time in an archive not mentioned below, send us a post sharing your experiences–the same goes for digital sources, workflow tips, and teaching ideas. Posts and post ideas should be sent to cara [dot] burnidge [at] uni [dot] edu.

*Stay tuned for RAAC2017 reflections. Those posts are on in the queue….

A Group Blog on American Religious History and Culture