SD Library Challenge Lesson #10:Wrap Up

This challenge has been very interesting and useful. The requirement of creating a blog was a good "challenge" because I hadn't done it before, and this showed me how easy it is to set up a blog.

I am glad we have access to all the SLSD resources - each one has its place. For my purposes, knowing about the Learning Express Library will probably be the most helpful. Just yesterday at the reference desk, I was able to guide a patron to that database for help with an exam practice.

On a personal level, I know I will be visiting the Ancestry Library more in the future. For so many of us whose ancestors were immigrants, it's interesting and fun to learn about their lives.

Finally, I would like to thank Jane and Julie for all their work on this challenge; as a "newbie" to South Dakota, this exercise has helped make me feel more a part of this state now.

P.S. In about 6 weeks we should start seeing nighthawks ("Goatsuckers") return to our state - don't forget to look up!

SD Library Challenge Lesson #9: Ancestry Library, HeritageQuest, Sanborn Maps

I had previously skimmed the surface of "Ancestry Library" looking for information about my dad's family, but had never thought to search my own name. I have a fairly common name - Barbara Harvey; there are over 600 people in the U.S. alone with that name! But adding my middle name and birth date helped narrow the results. Still, in the first record, my previous address was incorrect. There was also someone else named Barbara Harvey, born the same year as I was, who had also lived in Cedar Falls, Iowa! I did notice other inaccuracies, and would caution anyone doing serious genealogical research to also use other sources of information, if possible.

A search of "South Dakota" restricted to photos and maps returned over 3 million results, including the Corn Palace, of course! (Haven't seen it in person yet).

HeritageQuest was more difficult to search (or at least more difficult to find any results). I searched some of the same people that I did in Ancestry, but no results. I think this database would be more useful for someone who has already done some genealogical research and is looking for more specific information.

In Sanborn Maps, I looked for the house I live in in Vermillion. I know it's old, but I don't know any specific history. I was able to locate my house on the 1923 Vermillion map (515 E. Clark):

I suspect it's older than that, but the earlier maps don't show this level of detail. Fun!

All three of these resources are excellent for South Dakotans wanting to know more about their history.

SD Library Challenge Lesson #8: ArchiveGrid & Camio

As instructed in the discovery exercise, I typed "Sitting Bull autograph card" into the search box of ArchiveGrid, and this led to a record at Cornell University. The page in ArchiveGrid included a brief biography of Sitting Bull, a Sioux shaman who led a resistance against encroachment by "the white men," then later ended up touring with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show (also depicted in the recent remake of "True Grit"), which is apparently where the autograph card came from.

Rather than traveling to Ithaca, NY to view the autograph card, I clicked on the link to the Cornell Library, and after a quick search discovered that the item had been digitized: http://nac.library.cornell.edu/exhibition/slideshow/slideshow_3.html

I tried a search of my own for "prehistoric jewelry," (a subject I've been researching lately, and have since found, by the way, that the preferred terminology is "personal ornamentation"), and was at first a bit perplexed by the results. The results are organized by the name of the collection, such as "Smith papers."  Thus, I think this resource is better suited for scholars, historians, genealogists, etc. who are looking for information about or by a specific person.

Camio:

This is an excellent database for viewing works of art "up close and personal!"
I did the search for Paul Revere, and I was impressed with his silver work - lovely spoons! I also learned that his son (or other namesake, Paul Revere, Jr.) was also a silversmith. There were also works about Paul Revere, like Grant Wood's famous painting.

It's not easy to find at first, but the "view a high resolution full image" (at the top of the page) is wonderful for seeing details.
For example, when I searched "Sioux," one of the objects that caught my eye was a beaded dress. In high definition, the beadwork is very detailed.

I then searched "Dali," one of my favorite artists. I've seen some of his actual work in person in the Dali museum in St. Petersburg, FL, and it's almost as impressive to view them in Camio in hi-def: you can see brushstrokes and even imperfections in the canvas. There were 81 items returned in the search results.

As a health science librarian, most of my patrons would not use this for academic work. But I do work at the reference desk a few hours a week, and we have art majors who may desire to see some of these works for a variety of reasons. This could be especially helpful for art faculty by allowing a virtual field trip - there are probably many students in South Dakota who have never had the opportunity to visit a major art museum in Chicago, NY, etc. Camio offers more of a sense of what it is like to see these works in person.

I will definitely recommend it if any patrons ask about seeing works of art by a particular artist or in a particular genre.