Historical archaeologists' utilization of archives: an exploratory study

Abstract

HISTORICAL ARCHAEOLOGISTS' UTILIZATION OF ARCHIVES: AN EXPLORATORY STUDY by Elizabeth Ann Borchardt Until now, archival user studies focused primarily on historians and genealogists. However, other user groups use archival materials as part of their research. This thesis seeks to provide introductory research specifically examining historical archaeologists as an archival user group. To this end, a survey was conducted online to ascertain how historical archaeologists locate and use archival materials. An interview with one historical archaeologist was also conducted to corroborate the findings of the survey. The responses from these sources indicate that historical archaeologists in general have similar research concerns as historians and genealogists regarding the use and access of archival materials. These results combined with the previous user group studies suggest that archives need to increase their online presence, especially through finding aids and catalog searches. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank Dr. Debbie Hansen for all her guidance in turning this from a simple paper into a true thesis. Thanks are due to Lori Lindberg for encouraging me to pursue the thesis track and believing that the selected topic had merit and to Dr. Marco Meniketti for giving much needed advice on historical archaeologists. I also owe Supriya Wronkiewicz many thanks for being my second pair of eyes during the writing process. My husband, Josh, deserves much love and many thanks for being so supportive through the whole graduate school and thesis process.

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