Week of 7/26-7/30 Internship blog

The second to last week of my internship has now ended. It may be one of my most productive ones yet. I believe I have gotten into the groove and am familiar enough with the operations of the archive and the foundation to do my best work. Just like last week, I spent most of my time accessioning new objects and collections into the archive. There is a section on a shelf in the archive where objects yet to be accessioned are stored and I was able to get through all of them this week. I accessioned many slides, photos, old documents (such as an Oakland-Winter Garden high school diploma from 1919), and the objects that are going to be put on display in the coming weeks for the Winter Garden at the Movies exhibit.


I find this work to be very fulfilling. It’s not as exciting as research or writing, but not every profession is entirely made up of its best parts. I get to handle, observe, and record details about historical objects, and even if this is not the best part about the position, it is still necessary and interesting. Each day that I do this work I learn more about Winter Garden and the people who live/have lived here. This daily learning and connection to the past I think is a large reason why I am a history major. Learning history in this fashion fosters a sense of empathy. The objects, letters and photos are a constant reminder that history is everyone’s collective personal experiences. This, in my opinion, is the most important part of history in general.


Next week will be my last week, and it will be a short one due to the internship presentation taking place on Monday, August 2. I’m sad to say that my time as an intern is almost up.

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