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Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History

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Coordinates: 38°01′48″N 84°30′14″W / 38.030°N 84.504°W / 38.030; -84.504
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The Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, also known as The Nunn Center, the University of Kentucky, is one of the premier oral history centers in the world, known for a comprehensive oral history archival collection, ongoing interviewing projects, as well as being an innovator with regard to enhancing access to archived oral history interviews. The Nunn Center maintains a collection of over 14,000 oral history interviews made up of over 600 projects with an emphasis on: 20th century history; Appalachia; agriculture; African American history; the history of education; immigration; politics, and public policy; LGBTQ+; athletics; the arts; Kentucky writers; quilters and quilting; gender; diversity; the Civil Rights Movement; veterans' experiences; the history of the University of Kentucky; the Peace Corps; the history of healthcare; and industries including the coal, equine, and bourbon industries.[1] Although the Nunn Center began focusing on Kentucky history exclusively, it has expanded to also document oral history projects with national and international significance. The Nunn Center for Oral History is part of the University of Kentucky Libraries Special Collections Research Center.

History

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The oral history program at the University of Kentucky Libraries was established in 1973 by Charles Atcher. The center is named after former Kentucky Governor Louie B. Nunn. From 1974 until 2005, the program was directed by Terry Birdwhistell, Ed.D.[2] followed by Jeffrey Suchanek. Since 2008, the Nunn Center has been directed by Doug Boyd, Ph.D.[3]

Collection

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The Nunn Center contains over 14,000 oral history interviews featuring a variety of individuals and projects. Significant oral history projects include: the Family Farm Project, the Colonel Arthur L. Kelly Veterans Oral History Project, University of Kentucky history, African American history in Kentucky,[4] Kentucky writers, Kentucky's medical history, the history of professional baseball, as well as more recent project featuring the Horse Industry in Kentucky, as well as on the Kentucky General Assembly.

Digitization

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The Nunn Center has aggressively undertaken efforts to digitize its collection.[5] In 2014 it accelerated efforts to digitize its audio and video collection and is nearing completion of digitization of analog oral history interviews.

Oral History Metadata Synchronizer (OHMS)

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In 2008, the Nunn Center launched the Oral History Metadata Synchronizer (OHMS) online interface that synchronizes searchable text to audio and video. This free and open-source software system, designed by Nunn Center director Doug Boyd, Ph.D., enhances access to online oral history by empowering users to link from their search results to corresponding moments in the oral history interview.[6] The OHMS system was featured in an article in the Chronicle of Higher Education in July 2011.[7]

SPOKEdb

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In October 2011, the Nunn Center launched SPOKEdb, the online catalog and repository containing records for each oral history interview and project in the Nunn Center's archival collection. Designed by Doug Boyd, Ph.D., SPOKEdb functions as the primary access point for the Nunn Center's oral history collection. Initially, SPOKEdb was designed for Drupal, and in more recent years SPOKEdb uses Omeka as the content management system. The initial migration to Omeka was managed by Eric Weig and Michael Slone, current development of SPOKEdb is managed by Eric Weig.[8] Doug Boyd, In addition to functioning as an online catalog and repository, SPOKEdb functions as an oral history collection management tool.

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References

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  1. ^ "Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History". Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History.
  2. ^ "Terry L. Birdwhistell, Ed.D. in '95. Named to the Alumni Hall of Fame in 2006". University of Kentucky College of Education - Alumni Hall of Fame. 2006. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
  3. ^ "Nunn Center Names New Director" (PDF). The Kentucky Archivist. 30 (1): 5. Spring 2008. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  4. ^ Wright, G. C. (1 January 1982). "Oral History and the Search for the Black Past in Kentucky". Oral History Review. 10 (1): 73–91. doi:10.1093/ohr/10.1.73.
  5. ^ Weig, Eric; Terry, Kopana; Lybarger, Kathryn (May 2007). "Large Scale Digitization of Oral History: A Case Study". D-Lib Magazine. 13 (5/6). doi:10.1045/may2007-weig. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  6. ^ Harrison, Denise; Skalsky, Cindy (9 September 2009). "Digital Repositories: U Kentucky Goes Digital with Thousands of Oral Histories". Campus Technology. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  7. ^ Wolverton, Brad (7 July 2011). "New Tool Could Help Researchers Make Better Use of Oral Histories". The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  8. ^ Weig, Eric C. (January 2018). "Weig, Eric and Michael Slone. SPOKEdb: open-source information management for oral history. Digital Library Perspectives. Vol. 34 Issue: 2, pp.101-116". Digital Library Perspectives. 34 (2): 101–116. doi:10.1108/DLP-03-2017-0012.
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38°01′48″N 84°30′14″W / 38.030°N 84.504°W / 38.030; -84.504

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