Congregational Library Archive--week 1

Today was my first full day at my internship. And I do mean a full day. I was there from 9-5, just like all the paid employees. Of course, I'll only be doing that once a week, but still, it makes for a very long day when you aren't used to it. Although, in the end, it didn't feel like eight hours. In the middle of the afternoon the 2:00 seemed to go very slowly, but the total didn't feel too bad. I'll take that as a good sign that I may have actually chosen the right profession.

The collection is fascinating. I'm working with a single box of correspondence between the members of the Andover Theological Seminary class of 1877. Most of the letters are in fact addressed to the group at large and were sent in a circuitous route from member to member for nearly 20 years. When the letter made it full circle, the writer would remove his old letter (and send it to their "archivist" who I believe is responsible for keeping the letters from certain individuals in envelopes together and making my job much easier) and put in an update on what had happened in his life since the class letter had last been through, usually a year previous. I won't go into more detail here, because I would probably ramble on for hours.

The only downside to this job is also the upside. My supervisor pretty much showed me how to start, gave me a stack of supplies and left me alone to work. So I spent the entirety of my shift alone on the second floor of the stacks at a small worktable. (Well, she checked in on me a couple times, and other workers wandered through to get things off the stacks, but essentially I was alone.) By the end of the day I was just about talking to myself out loud just to deal with it. Talking about the letters, at least, but still, talking to myself is not the most professional way to act on the first day.

Taking the train back at 5:00 was a lot better than coming into town at 8:30 in the morning, which was great, because I was tired and really wanted a seat. On the way in this morning it was crowded and hot. I was actually sweating. But at the library, at least in the stacks, it was cold. I ended up putting my coat on for the afternoon--next week I'm bringing a sweater.

-Kim