Category: Digital Collections

The Éire of Library Exploration

March is Irish Heritage Month. With this observance in mind and at hand, there are an abundance of resources to share with you.

We are delighted to announce the successful conclusion of our Irish history project at the archives which was generously funded by the New Jersey Historical Commission, Irish Immigrant Solidarity in New Jersey, 1870-Present.  This project hired an advanced graduate student in Library Science, Quinn Christie, to process the papers of several Irish fraternal organizations.  The cornerstone of the project was processing the papers of the historian of the Ancient Order of the Hibernians, John Concannon.  This enormous collection of 120 linear feet (120 banker’s boxes of materials) had to be rehoused in archival boxes and folders, organized in a logical way and described so that researchers could find what they were looking for by a simple keyword search.  In addition, a collection of 63 fragile registers which recorded the membership records of the Knights of Columbus, had to be preserved, which entailed building custom size boxes for each one from archival materials.

Example of St. Patrick’s Day Historical Resources found in our Special Collections

Our project archivist was so efficient that she completed this work ahead of schedule, allowing time for her and her colleague Sean Cureton to digitize substantial portions of the collections, build digital exhibits, and create a display window just in time for St. Patrick’s Day.  In the end, over 1,200 files were digitized, comprising almost 29 GB of data.  The digitized materials can be found by exploring the finding aids here:

The Papers of John Concannon and the Ancient Order of the Hibernians

https://archivesspace-library.shu.edu/repositories/2/resources/500

James MacFarland Collection

https://archivesspace-library.shu.edu/repositories/2/resources/505

Ancient Order of the Hibernians – New Jersey Collection

https://archivesspace-library.shu.edu/repositories/2/resources/506

Knights of Columbus and the Catholic Daughters of America – New Jersey Chapter

https://archivesspace-library.shu.edu/repositories/2/resources/507

James Comerford Papers

https://archivesspace-library.shu.edu/repositories/2/resources/508

Gloria Schneider Papers

https://archivesspace-library.shu.edu/repositories/2/resources/510

Please visit our digital exhibits:

Irish-American Organizations: The Power of Connection by Quinn Christie

James Comerford: Irish American History and Culture by Sean Cureton

“Irish American Organizations and Political Advocacy Exhibit.” Window Gallery, Walsh Library

And stop by the first floor of Walsh Library to see our window exhibit!

In addition, a vast selection of information resources can be found related to Ireland “Éire” within the Seton Hall University Libraries.

Publications related to the Irish experience cover a wide range of specific topics including culture, history, literature, and religion to name just a few of the interesting themes that await discovery.

You are welcome to access our Library Guide as a starting point for specific Ireland and American Irish-centered content . . .

Ireland & American Irish Studies

We also feature a specialized research site dedicated to Irish Literature created and maintained by Professor Gerry Shea . . .

Irish Literature: Celtic Revival to Present

The Irish have been a popular subject for study on our campus for decades and we have featured specific aspects of our collections within past news stories published over the years. Please feel free to explore more specific highlights found within our archived blog entries . . .

Irish Featured Research Blog Posts – University Libraries

Irish Featured Research Blog Posts – Archives & Special Collections Center

Example of Irish inspired Cover Art representing various volumes found in our Irish-Themed Book Collections

“Happy Reading” or “Sásta Taighde!”

Need more help? Book a research appointment here: Research Appointment Site

 

 

 

 

 

 

Celebrate Caribbean American Heritage Month

Happy Caribbean American Heritage Month! Chelsea Barrett, Business Librarian / Africana Studies Liaison, in partnership with Sarah Ponichtera, Assistant Dean for Special Collections & the Gallery, have compiled a list of information on Caribbean American culture, life, and history.

Resources
A Proclamation on National Caribbean-American Heritage Month, 2021
President Joseph Biden’s statement on Caribbean Heritage Month where he speaks on the importance of Caribbean Americans, including Vice President Kamala Harris and honoring others that have contributed to the nation’s progression.

Caribbean American Heritage Month: Caribbean History and Culture
The U.S. Department of the Interior highlighted information on Caribbean History and Culture from a governmental perspective. See information on Caribbean-related legislation, Caribbean demographics, music, food and much more!

Archives and Special Collections
The SHU Archives and Special Collections would like to highlight MSS 36, The Cause of Pierre Toussaint.  This collection documents the activism of two individuals who sought to have Pierre Toussaint, the 18th century Haitian American former slave turned New York philanthropist buried at St. Patrick’s, canonized as a saint.  The collection includes letters of these individuals to figures in the Catholic Church, including Archbishops and the Pope advocating for this cause, photographs of his former burial place and re-burial at St. Patrick’s, and poems written in support of the cause. The materials are mainly from the 1990s.

Interested in this collection? Visit our finding aid for more information.

If you are interested in viewing the original materials, feel free to make an appointment with the SHU Archives and Special Collections.

Read
Interested in some Caribbean Reads? View our book display here and feel free to send recommendations!! Caribbean American Heritage Month Virtual Display

Watch
PBS – Caribbean American Heritage Month

Research Help & Resources
Africana Studies Librarians-send an email or schedule a chat!
Africana Studies Guide–Caribbean Page

Social Media
Follow the SHU West Indian Student Organization on Instagram for amazing Caribbean content! @shu_wiso

Follow Seton Hall University Libraries on social media for Caribbean American posts, updates and much more! Instagram · Twitter · Facebook

Blog post by Chelsea Barrett, Business Librarian / Africana Studies Liaison.

University Libraries Launch Special Projects to Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month

The University Libraries invites the Seton Hall University community to contribute to several projects in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month. Hispanic Heritage Month is observed from September 15 to October 15 by celebrating the histories, cultures, and contributions of Hispanic and Latino/a/x peoples.

In collaboration with the Joseph A. Unanue Latino Institute, the Library will be adding a select number of literary contributions by Hispanic and Latino/a/x authors. To participate in the literature selection process, please complete this survey.

Mi Voz, an e-repository, will collect personal essays, audio files and artwork from the Seton Hall University community. Contributors are asked to reflect on what being Hispanic or Latino/a/x in the United States means to them. The e-repository will be open to submissions until October 31, 2020 and contributors can submit their work here. The collection will ultimately be preserved in the archives’ digital preservation system.  “The Monsignor Field Archives and Special Collections Center is dedicated to building its collections to better represent the entire Seton Hall community, and collections like this will preserve the voices of today’s Hispanic and Latino/a/x students for future generations,” said Sarah Ponichtera, Assistant Dean for Special Collections and the Gallery.

The Walsh Gallery’s Nuestras Familias is a virtual photography gallery that will be premiering on October 1, 2020. The gallery will highlight members of the Seton Hall community and the families that support, encourage, and inspire them. Please send 300 DPI JPEG images along with the title of the image and the photographer credit to latinoinstitute@shu.edu by September 15, 2020.

Seton Hall University’s Hispanic Heritage Month Committee has united departments and student organizations for a month-long series of events and special project. This year’s theme, Navigating Latinidad, will look at what it means to identify as Hispanic and Latino/a/x and how that identity takes form in American society. By Navigating Latinidad, we can explore the labels chosen for us and their respective histories.

To learn more about the month’s activities, please visit: https://www.shu.edu/latino-institute/hispanic-heritage-month.cfm

Check back throughout the month to see blog posts and social media posts from student scholars and leaders about reading recommendations and ways to get involved in the SHU and greater Latinx and Hispanic communities.

 

CommArts 16th Annual Student Art & Design Exhibition

Every year the Walsh Gallery hosts CommArts’ Annual Student Art & Design Exhibition. This year, despite the closure of the gallery due to COVID-19, we still want to honor the work of our students, especially some selections from students of the graduating class of 2020.

View the full digital exhibition at the_space.

Jonathan Petiote (SHU 2020)
Bioluminescent Jellyfish
Class: Drawing As Design
Professor Kolankowski
This project was to use Prismacolor colored pencils and create a luminescent bright colored environment in black paper. My focus was to have a setting of sea creatures such as jellyfish.Jellyfish are the types of sea life that makes colorful lights at the ocean.

Andrew Cates (SHU 2020)
Design Practicum
Professor Krus
This self-portrait series stemmed out of frustration with not being able to have a traditional graduation in May. I wanted to try and capture some of the emotion that myself and some other graduates would be feeling, and also show what a graduation would look like if it did happen right now. I hope I’ve showed some of the longing our graduating class feels for the reward of hearing your named called and walking across the stage with my current events take on the classic graduation portrait.

Claire Evans (SHU 2020)
Cooped Up
Social Impact Design
Professor Lhowe
Cooped up is a project visually and interactively communicating the plight of industrially farmed chickens. The aim is to bring the audience face to face with uncomfortable truths, inspire action, and promote awareness.

Luis Barreiros (SHU 2020)
Light in a Bottle
Design Practicum
Professor Krus
In this assignment I was tasked with making a design of anything I wanted while 3D modeling and render it with an animation. For this I chose to model a particle effect going into a bottle, once the light effect from the particles I was creating reached the bottle I made it so that it would “over flow” increasing the light intensity and basically “burn” the screen to end the animation.

Seton Hall University Libraries Digitized Collections Technology Plan

Seton Hall University Libraries has just posted its Digitized Collections Technology Plan: 2016-2012.

Our strategic plans goals point to the need for more robust digital collections services, including a digital preservation program to share “selected Seton Hall assets to highlight the University, mission, and depth of resources.” This document addresses the requirements needed to achieve these goals, with the long-term aim of ensuring that born- and created-digital information is accessible and preserved for future access.

“We share with all libraries the responsibility of preserving the cultural and intellectual legacy of human endeavor and knowledge for current and future use, particularly those materials that speak to the University’s history, Catholic mission and tradition of service.”

Digital Humanities Symposium Tuesday, May 6th.

The Teaching, Learning & Technology Roundtable and the Digital Humanities Committee presents a symposium to inform our colleagues about the digital humanities and inspire them to think more about how they might apply DH tools in their own work. The symposium will showcase model projects in the digital humanities by guest speakers from Columbia University, City College of New York and Seton Hall University.

Tuesday, May 6
9 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Walsh Library – ITV Room

See full news item

Please R.S.V.P by E-mail to Lysa Martinelli.

Accessibility by WAH