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News: 2012

The Portal to Texas History

The Portal to Texas History is a state-wide collaborative digital program that offers students and lifelong learners a digital gateway to the rich collections held in Texas libraries, museums, archives, historical societies, and private collections. It features digital reproductions of photographs, maps, letters, documents, newspapers, books, artifacts, and more. In addition, the Portal’s Resources4 Educators pages provide resources and curricula that comply with TEKS (Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills) standards and highlight relevant materials for students and classroom teachers. Constantly growing, the Portal contains more than 2.8 million digital files and receives some 290,000 uses per month. To learn more about the Portal’s contents, please explore by collections. For this ongoing program, the Digital Projects Unit actively seeks new content partners, provides services for educators, digitizes materials, develops and maintains the UNT Libraries’ metadata guidelines, creates metadata and assists partners with their own descriptive metadata, hosts and archives content, and works vigorously to enhance users’ experience through regular improvements to our search and retrieval systems. digital_projects_unit_in_the_news
Posted: 12/13/2012

Spotlight on Careers: Featured Books

Looking for information on resume writing, career development, or job searches? Check out our December/January featured book display at Discovery Park Library. discovery_park_collection_highlight_resource_highlight
Posted: 11/30/2012

The Thanksgiving Switch

Controversy ensued in 1939 when President Roosevelt selected a non-traditional date for Thanksgiving. You can find all kinds of interesting things in the Texas Digital Newspaper Collection of The Portal to Texas History. Who knew: Prior to the 1940s, Thanksgiving was a holiday declared each year by presidential proclamation. State governors then chose whether to observe the holiday in their own states. Controversy ensued in 1939 when President Roosevelt selected a non-traditional date for Thanksgiving. In 1939, Texans observed Thanksgiving both on November 23, as declared by President Roosevelt, and on November 30, the traditional “last Thursday.” Borger Daily Herald (Borger, Tex.), Vol. 14, No. 1, Ed. 1 Thursday, November 23, 1939, p. 1 Citizens of Tulia, Texas were firmly in favor of the traditional date. The Tulia Herald (Tulia, Tex), Vol. 30, No. 46, Ed. 1, Thursday, November 16, 1939, p. 1 Students at Howard Payne College reasoned that Thanksgiving should be celebrated for the entire week from November 23 to November 30. The Yellow Jacket (Brownwood, Tex.), Vol. 26, No. 10, Ed. 1, Thursday, November 23, 1939, p. 2 Two years later, in December 1941, Congress passed a joint resolution officially establishing Thanksgiving Day as a legal public holiday to be observed on the fourth Thursday in November each year. President Roosevelt signed the measure into law on December 26, 1941. (See 1941 Cong Rec 10130 and 55 Stat 862.) Apparently, a new federal holiday wasn’t big news compared to the start of World War II. We have been unable to find any mention of the Thanksgiving legislation in our newspaper collection. The Texas Digital Newspaper Collection in The Portal to Texas History contains more than 109,000 historic newspaper issues. Find more about Thanksgiving at https://texashistory.unt.edu/explore/collections/TDNP/browse/?q=thanksgiving&t=fulltext. –submitted by Nancy Reis, Publications Specialist, Digital Libraries Division Photograph: [A turkey looks at the camera] by José L. Castillo https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth24004/ digital_libraries_collection_highlight
Posted: 11/14/2012

The Osterhout Papers

The Portal to Texas History now includes documents contributed by Austin College and Rice University about statesman John Patterson Osterhout and his family. J. P. Osterhout was a lawyer and judge in Texas, as well as postmaster of Belton, Texas for several years; he also published a newspaper and ran for Congress (though he lost all three elections). Most of the items in the collection are letters, sent between Osterhout and his family while he traveled as a circuit judge, and among his children while they were at college. They discuss local news, such as a fire in Belton; news from school, such as Gertie Osterhout’s letter about life at Baylor College; and various family news. Other items of interest include certificates of appointment and similar documents as well as documents related to the Union Baptist Association and Baylor College. For more information about J. P. Osterhout, also check out his biography on The Handbook of Texas Online. –submitted by Hannah Tarver, Head, Digital Projects Unit digital_libraries_collection_highlight
Posted: 11/14/2012

SHCY Outreach Grant Awarded to Spencer Keralis

Spencer Keralis, Director for Digital Scholarship with the Digital Scholarship Co-Operative, was awarded an Outreach Grant by the Society for the History of Children & Youth (SHCY). The award will support “They leave me and I love them more”: A Symposium on the Legacies of Maurice Sendak on April 26, 2013. The Symposium will feature scholarly papers on Sendak’s work, and readings of his popular children’s books. Participants so far include: Marshall Armintor, Lecturer—English Courtney Jacobs, Rare Books Librarian Spencer Keralis, Director for Digital Scholarship Jennifer Way, Associate Professor—Art Education and Art History Further details will be available at http://disco.unt.edu. digital_libraries_in_the_news_grant_award
Posted: 10/30/2012

Picturing the Mexican Revolution

El Paso commercial photographer Otis Aultman’s photographs captured fleeing refugees, battle scenes, scouts, and troops. El Paso newspapers further documented the conflict. From 1911 to 1917, El Paso commercial photographer Otis Aultman documented the Mexican Revolution near the border of Texas. Nearly one hundred years later, UNT Libraries digitized Aultman’s glass plate negatives–many of which had never been seen before–for El Paso Public Library. Aultman captured fleeing refugees, battle scenes in Ciudad Juarez, Yaqui Indian scouts, and American troops stationed close by. The images signify the historic impact that the Revolution had on the United States with more than 800,000 persons immigrating to the U.S. during the war. As one of the few American photographers for whom General Pancho Villa would pose, Aultman spent much of his time following Villa and his soldiers. In addition to El Paso Public Library’s collection of Aultman’s photographs, UNT Libraries also digitized the El Paso Times Herald and El Paso Morning Times that provided daily accounts of the Mexican Revolution. Interestingly, there is an article about Mormon refugees fleeing Mexico to El Paso in 1912; among them were the Romney family that included Governor Mitt Romney’s father George W. Romney who was five years old at the time. –submitted by Tara Carlisle, Project Development Librarian, External Relations digital_libraries_collection_highlight
Posted: 10/12/2012

Texas Register in The Portal to Texas History

The entire run of the Texas Register is now available in The Portal to Texas History. This weekly publication records state agency rule making and review actions, governor’s appointments, attorney general opinions, requests for proposals, and other miscellaneous documents. The entire run of the Texas Register is now available in The Portal to Texas History. The Texas Register, published weekly by the Texas Secretary of State, records state agency rule making and review actions, governor’s appointments, attorney general opinions, requests for proposals, and other miscellaneous documents. In 2000, the Office of the Texas Secretary of State – Texas Register and the University of North Texas Libraries entered into a partnership agreement to ensure permanent storage and public access to the electronic back files (issues published since September 1991) of the Texas Register. Accordingly, more than 24,000 files were transferred from the Texas Register Office to the UNT Libraries. They were organized and authenticated for public use via a dedicated website maintained by our Government Documents Department. In 2010 we began working to migrate the Texas Register Archive to The Portal to Texas History in order to provide long-term access and preservation and to make use of the search and reading functionalities built into the Portal. In 2011, we began to digitize the pre-1991 print issues of the Texas Register to provide a complete run of the publication to users. As of September 2012, all issues of the Texas Register are available in digital format. New issues appear first at the Texas Secretary of State’s Texas Register website and then are incorporated into UNT’s Texas Register Collection in the Portal. You can read the Texas Register online in our integrated page-turning interface which provides highlighted search terms and other features such as rotation and image magnification. In addition, you can download the Texas Register as PDF, text, and/or HTML files. Help with navigating and searching the collection is available in our guide, “Using the Texas Register Collection.” –submitted by Nancy Reis, Publications Specialist, Digital Libraries Division; Daniel Alemneh, Supervisor, Digital Curation Unit; and Jesse Silva, Head, Government Documents digital_libraries_collection_highlight
Posted: 10/11/2012

Traveling the National Road of Texas

Established by the Congress of the Republic of Texas in 1844, the Central National Road was set to become part of a larger “international highway” connecting San Antonio and St. Louis. In 1844, the Congress of the Republic of Texas passed a law to open and establish a National Road. Running from the Elm Fork of the Trinity River to Kiomatia Crossing on the Red River in far northeast Texas, this Central National Road was set to become part of a larger “international highway” connecting San Antonio to St. Louis. Travel with us through The Portal to Texas History to learn more from primary and secondary resources. The enabling law appears in The Laws of Texas, 1822-1897 Volume 2. Here we learn that the road was to be at least 30 feet wide with no tree stumps taller than 12 inches from the ground. Bridges were to be at least 15 feet wide and “built of good substantial materials.” Contractors building the road would be paid in public land grants. Newspapers of the time not only reprinted the legislation (The Northern Standard, March 2, 1844) but provided opinions and commentary such as these remarks from the Telegraph and Texas Register, March 20, 1844: “the act does not specify that any ditches shall be cut to drain the swamps or marches [sic] through which the road may pass . . . the road may be opened through the prairies only, while the sections containing woodlands and those where bridges are required, will be neglected, and thus the road would be useless.” A century later, historians discovered the surveyors’ notes for the road. In a 1944 issue of The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, J. W. Williams discussed the route indicated by the notes and provided maps. https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth146054/m1/242/ In the end, westward movement of the frontier and changes in population centers reduced the importance of the road, but it is still remembered in a historical marker in Paris, Texas. To learn more, search for “central national road” in the Portal. –submitted by Nancy Reis, Publications Specialist, Digital Libraries Division digital_libraries_collection_highlight
Posted: 10/05/2012

Transportation in Texas

The Portal to Texas History collection “Are We There Yet? Transportation in Central Texas” explores various methods of transportation through images. Historically, people have found lots of ways to travel, particularly in a state as large as Texas. One collection in The Portal to Texas History titled, “Are We There Yet? Transportation in Central Texas” explores various methods of transportation through images. The collection comprises photographs from three different institutions, digitized under a grant project. The photographs from Taylor Public Library include images from Taylor, Texas such as parade floats, horse-drawn wagons, bicycles, trains, and, of course, automobiles. Some of the images show city streets throughout the years, or people traveling to and from Taylor. Others show people posing with various vehicles, such as this image, “Nurses at Taylor Sanitarium”: There are similar images from the Williamson Museum depicting transportation throughout Williamson County. Although there are many more images of automobiles, buggies, and parade floats, there are also goat carts, old baby buggies, airplanes, and many people riding animals, like this one: The third organization to contribute to the collection is the Texas Department of Transportation. Those photographs include images of highway structures, bridges, and construction work done through TxDOT contractors. Most of these photographs are close-up images to display particular details in the structures (such as braces for overpasses and bridges) or wider views to show highways and construction projects completed. For example, this image, “[U.S. Highway 79 in Taylor]” shows the detail of a sidewalk corner and retaining wall on a TxDOT street: To see some of the interesting ways that Texans have found to get around, check out the rest of the collection or look at some of the other items in the Portal related to transportation. –submitted by Hannah Tarver, Head, Digital Projects Unit digital_libraries_collection_highlight
Posted: 10/05/2012

CyberCemetery

The CyberCemetery is an archive of government websites that have ceased operation (usually websites of defunct government agencies and commissions that have issued a final report). This collection features a variety of topics indicative of the broad nature of government information. In particular, this collection features websites that cover topics supporting the university’s curriculum and particular program strengths. UNT Digital Library: CyberCemetery libraries_in_the_news_did_you_know_collection_highlight
Posted: 10/04/2012

Thank a Teacher Program @ UNT

Let your voice be heard with a thank you note! Outstanding teachers at UNT do make a difference for students. They make learning challenging and fun; they are available when needed; and they weather many storms with students to foster bright futures. When teachers have made this kind of a difference, many students wish for a way to say “Thanks”. UNT students have the opportunity to say “Thanks” through the Thank a Teacher Program @ UNT. You have until Friday, December 5, 2014 to complete the form to share your thanks with your teacher(s). You may complete as many of these forms as you wish (one for each teacher you wish to thank). You may also choose to remain anonymous. Your notes will be sent to your teachers as part of a letter of recognition form the Provost. user_interfaces_in_the_news_did_you_know
Posted: 09/28/2012

Portal to Texas History Showcases Texas' Colorful Past

From the earliest inhabitants to the newest immigrants, folks who have lived in Texas forged a unique identity for the state. If Texas is “the obsession, the proper study, and the passionate possession of all Texans,” it is based on a past unlike any other state in the union. To learn more, see the full article in UNT’s InHouse: Portal to Texas History showcases Texas’ colorful past. digital_libraries_in_the_news_collection_highlight
Posted: 09/20/2012

National Constitution Day - September 17, 2012

On Sept. 17, 1787, a group of delegates gathered in Philadelphia to sign a document that created the law of a new nation called the United States of America. The document, the Constitution of the United States is the country’s supreme law. To learn more, see the full article in UNT’s InHouse: Celebrate Constitution Day by perusing the nation’s legal touchstone. libraries_in_the_news_did_you_know
Posted: 09/12/2012

The UNT Libraries' Website Has A New Look!

Just in time for the new semester, the UNT Libraries’ website has a brand new look! This new design is aiming to improve the user experience: putting UNT students, faculty and staff needs at front and center. Highlights: Improved search options and search boxes location Added today’s building hours, and improved locations and hours display Added a collapsible “Find” tab throughout the site that will provide quick access to frequently used search options, features, and services Improved news and events display to help promote Libraries’ collections, happenings, and services Improved service-oriented and context-driven information architecture to make discovering and using library services and resources more straight-forward Aligned with other UNT schools and colleges in adopting the new UNT branding requirements user_interfaces_about_the_libraries
Posted: 08/15/2012

Sports and Recreation in The Portal to Texas History

The Portal to Texas History includes hundreds of items documenting the history of professional, collegiate, and amateur sports in Texas, including two photos of Olympic medalists. The excitement of the 2012 Olympic Summer Games in London, England became sports history when competition ended on August 12th, 2012. The Portal to Texas History includes hundreds of items documenting the history of professional, collegiate, and amateur sports in Texas, including two photos of Olympic medalists. In this photo Greg Bell, one of the world’s best long jumpers in the 1950s, is congratulated after winning the 1957 NCAA championship in Austin, Texas. Bell also won the gold medal in the long jump at the 1956 Olympic Games in Melbourne, Australia. The long jump is one of the oldest Olympic sports, as it was an event at the first modern Olympic games in 1896 and the ancient Olympic games in Greece. Also in the Portal is a photo of Fred Newhouse, a track athlete and Texas native. Newhouse competed in the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal, Canada, winning gold and silver medals. He won the gold as a member of the United States men’s 4x400 meter relay team. In the final of the men’s 400 meter individual race, he was eclipsed by Alberto Juantorena of Cuba and placed second. For more photos of sports from karate to horse riding, browse the Portal using the subject terms “Sports and Recreation.” –submitted by Sarah Lynn Fisher, NDNP Coordinator for Oklahoma Historical Newspapers, Digital Newspaper Unit digital_libraries_collection_highlight
Posted: 08/13/2012

UNT Libraries to House Archives from Resource Center Dallas

DENTON (UNT), Texas – Materials that trace 60 years of the history of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender social movements in the North Texas region will be housed at the University of North Texas Libraries under an agreement with Resource Center Dallas to acquire the center’s archives. The UNT Libraries will receive approximately 400 boxes of newspapers, periodicals, press clippings, audio files, videotapes of gay pride parades and other events, music CDs, and movies focusing on LGBT and HIV/AIDS topics from the center’s Phil Johnson Historic Archives and Research Library. The libraries will also receive T-shirts, buttons and other promotion items from AIDS walks and other fundraising events, and uniforms and other materials from gay sports teams from the archives. The collection will be known as the Resource Center Dallas LGBT Collection of the UNT Libraries. special_collections_in_the_news
Posted: 08/09/2012

Community Outreach Through Digital Newspapers

The internationally acclaimed Digital Libraries Division at the UNT Libraries is a campus leader in supporting Goal 4 of the Four Bold Goals – establishing UNT as a nationally recognized, engaged university and regional leader by building and expanding mutually beneficial partnerships and resources through its involvement in the National Digital Newspaper Program and its establishment of the Texas Digital Newspaper Program. To learn more, see the full article in UNT’s InHouse: Initiative’s goal to create online repository representing all Texas counties. digital_libraries_in_the_news
Posted: 08/06/2012

Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) Collection Available Online

From India to Germany and New Zealand to Nigeria, users from more than 200 countries around the globe look to UNT’s collection of electronic theses and dissertations (ETDs) to help further their own research endeavors. To learn more, see the full article in UNT’s InHouse: UNT Libraries house a must-see digital collection. digital_libraries_in_the_news_collection_highlight
Posted: 08/06/2012

Health and Society in Video

This trial is active until September 30, 2012, and is a free 60-day database trial. Use the following link to access: http://hlth.alexanderstreet.com Health and the human condition have become important components for studies in sociology, culture, ethics, government, public policy, and other disciplines that examine how people interact with the world. Alexander Street Press’s Health and Society in Video is a unique online collection of streaming documentaries that bridge the gap between science and public understanding. These films present the realities of illness, treatment, and modern healthcare systems and examine the tumultuous history of society’s response to pandemics and other health crises world-wide. collection_management
Posted: 08/06/2012

Academic Charts Online

Academic Charts Online (ACO) is a new and unparalleled database of popular music chart data from around the world. From the US, UK, Europe, South America, and Asia, ACO delivers access to an authoritative database under exclusive academic license from Billboard, the Official Charts Company, and more. collection_management
Posted: 08/06/2012

Get the Lay of the Land in Texas

The Portal to Texas History contains topographic maps from the U.S. Geological Survey and historic cadastral maps from the Texas General Land Office. If you have any interests in maps, or the history of Texas and property ownership, we have a large collection of maps on the Portal, including historic cadastral and topographic maps. In our USGS Topographic Map Collection, we have two sets of digital quadrangle maps. There is a set of regular topographic maps covering the entire state, as well as a second set of the same maps captured with satellite photos. We also have more than 900 historic Texas county maps from the General Land Office and many other historic and modern maps covering the state. –submitted by Hannah Tarver, Head, Digital Projects Unit digital_libraries_collection_highlight
Posted: 08/02/2012

The Portal to Texas History is Ready for K-12 Teachers

Our Resources4 Educators web site incorporates primary source materials into more than 60 lesson plans that make learning fun and bring history to life. As beginning of the school year approaches, 4th and 7th grade history teachers will flock to The Portal to Texas History’s Resources4 Educators web site to find lesson plans for their classes. Over the years, with the help of grant funding, UNT graduate students and teachers have created more than sixty lesson plans that incorporate primary source materials from The Portal to Texas History. Along with meeting Texas’ curriculum standards, the goal when designing the lessons is to make learning fun and bring history to life by using photographs, historical maps, newspapers, letters, and artifacts from collections in the Portal. On average the Portal’s Resources4 Educators website receives 8,000 visitors each month, 1,500 of which end up downloading the lessons to use in their classrooms. The lessons’ topics range from Cabeza de Vaca’s early exploration to the Civil Rights movement in Texas, and it’s no surprise that the two most popular lessons are the “Remember the Alamo” and “Cowboy Culture.” –submitted by Tara Carlisle, Project Development Librarian, External Relations digital_libraries_collection_highlight
Posted: 08/02/2012

Geographic Coverage in the Digital Collections

Did you know that the digital collections include items topically related to nearly every country in the world? Use our “Explore by Locations” feature to find things about a particular place. Did you know that the digital collections include items topically related to nearly every country in the world? Our “Explore by Locations” feature is a great way to find things about a particular place; the number of items are displayed on heat maps to present a visual/geographic representation. In the Portal, we have items from or about every Texas county and some items related to other states and countries: https://texashistory.unt.edu/explore/locations/ In the Digital Library, we have items topically related to nearly every country on the world map! Find one that interests you: https://digital.library.unt.edu/explore/locations/ –submitted by Hannah Tarver, Head, Digital Projects Unit digital_libraries_collection_highlight
Posted: 07/31/2012

Finding Similar Items in the Digital Collections

Did you know that metadata in the digital collections can help you find similar items? Take advantage of the”clickable” fields in our item records. Did you know that metadata in the digital collections can help you find similar items? When you look at the full record for an item in The Portal to Texas History or the UNT Digital Library, you may notice that values in several of the fields are clickable to help users find “more items like this one.” Clicking on the name of a creator, contributor, or publisher will give you a results list of the items created/published by that person or organization. Similarly, clicking on a subject will find all of the records with the same keyword or controlled term. Other fields that work this way include: series/serial titles, coverage places, time periods, academic departments, and degree information (for theses and dissertations). –submitted by Hannah Tarver, Head, Digital Projects Unit digital_libraries_collection_highlight
Posted: 07/31/2012

Born Digital Newspapers

We acquire born digital newspaper PDF print masters in an effort to preserve and make these more recent newspaper issues publicly available on The Portal to Texas History. Even though these newspapers are not old, they are still historic–representing the timeline of a community’s existence. The UNT Libraries Digital Newspaper Unit actively seeks to acquire born digital newspaper PDF print masters in an effort to preserve and make these more recent newspaper issues publicly available on The Portal to Texas History. Access equals preservation because it allows later generations to learn about history; this means that all documents are historic, regardless of publication date. The Texas Digital Newspaper Program strives to connect local cultural memory institutions with their respective newspaper publishers to digitally preserve newspapers. Until the early 2000s, publishers microfilmed their newspapers and gave copies to their public libraries; however, when PDF print masters became commonplace, publishers started to provide these on CD or DVD to their public libraries.  In addition to obvious preservation problems that CDs and DVDs represent, many local public libraries in Texas have reported no longer even receiving disks, or that their technological needs were such that the disks were unreadable within their libraries.  This makes open digital access to newspapers even more critical. As a result of communication with public memory institutions, the Texas Digital Newspaper Program hosts PDF print master newspapers from multiple publishers, spanning approximately 2002 to present. The primary difference between the born digital PDF versions of the newspaper and the images scanned from microfilm is that the PDF-derived images are in color.  Even though these newspapers are not old, they are still historic.  Newspapers represent the timeline of a community’s existence, and the combined issues, digitized from both microfilm and PDF, are a valued and valuable collection on the Portal. –submitted by Ana Krahmer, Supervisor, Digital Newspaper Unit digital_libraries_did_you_know_collection_highlight
Posted: 07/31/2012

American Lumberman Photographs of Southern Pine Lumber Company

Taken in 1903 and 1907, these gelatin silver prints document lumber production activities near Diboll in East Texas. Taken in 1903 and 1907, these 255 gelatin silver prints were originally published in American Lumberman, a weekly trade journal.  The majority of the shots document lumber production activities near Diboll in East Texas, including log cutting, transportation, sawmills, and kilns.  The collection also provides a glimpse of everyday life in a company town and in the logging camps. –submitted by Nancy Reis, Publications Specialist, Digital Libraries Division digital_libraries_collection_highlight
Posted: 07/31/2012

Searching Newspapers on The Portal to Texas History

Over 94,000 issues of historical Texas newspapers are currently available on The Portal to Texas History. Here are some tips for searching within this incredible archive. Libraries and archives are prominent supporting characters in several current reality television shows, such as Who Do You Think You Are? on NBC and Finding Your Roots on PBS. In these series, celebrities can be seen researching their family history alongside librarians, genealogists, and historians. Newspapers are one of the many invaluable primary sources used in these shows for genealogical research. Newspaper archives offer a historical record of interest to researchers in many academic areas, including political science, sociology, and arts and literature. Over 94,000 issues (over 700,000 pages) of historical Texas newspapers, all of which are full-text searchable, are currently available on The Portal to Texas History. Here are some tips for searching within this incredible archive: Search for newspapers published on a specific date Note: Each newspaper issue includes the publication date in the metadata title. In the “Search within The Portal to Texas History” section of the homepage, limit the resource type to “Newspapers” by clicking on the word “Newspapers” above the search box. Select “Title” from the drop-down menu to the right of the search box. Type the specific date in quotation marks in the search box. Click “Submit” to the right of the drop-down menu. Search for newspapers published in a specific city or county In the “Search within The Portal to Texas History” section of the homepage, limit the resource type to “Newspapers” by clicking on the word “Newspapers” above the search box. Select “Metadata” from the drop-down menu to the right of the search box. Type the specific city or county in quotation marks in the search box. Click “Submit” to the right of the drop-down menu. Search for issues of a specific newspaper title In the “Search within The Portal to Texas History” section of the homepage, limit the resource type to “Newspapers” by clicking on the word “Newspapers” above the search box. Select “Title” from the drop-down menu to the right of the search box. Type the newspaper title in quotation marks in the search box. Click “Submit” to the right of the drop-down menu. You can then further limit your search by date by selecting from the facets on the left side of the page. If the date or decade is not listed, try clicking “More…” at the bottom of the list. –submitted by Sarah Lynn Fisher, NDNP Coordinator for Oklahoma Historical Newspapers, and Ann Howington, NDNP Coordinator for Texas Digital Newspapers, Digital Newspaper Unit digital_libraries_collection_highlight
Posted: 07/30/2012

Crowdsourcing and Digital Libraries

Waco community members have been submitting names and locations for unidentified photographs in the Mike Cochran collection. The Portal hopes to use more crowdsourcing to preserve segments of history that would otherwise be lost. On May 27, 2012, a Waco Tribune-Herald article about a collection of photographs in The Portal to Texas History presented a true mystery. The photos had been discovered in a “junk store north of Waco, stuffed inside a dirty plastic bag” by Mike Cochran who brought them to the UNT Libraries to digitize. The Waco Tribune article put out a call to the Waco community to view the collection and identify the people in the photographs. The plan worked and the story unfolds. Through the Portal’s feedback system, Waco community members have been submitting the names of people and locations in the photographs, such as with this wedding photograph. With such wonderful input from the community, a follow-up article was written in the Waco Tribune-Herald. It turns out that the little boy with the bicycle is Larry Wydermyer, and the photographer was Junious M. Williams who was Wydermyer’s neighbor at the time. According to Wydermyer, Junius Williams had a photography studio in the back of his house and took photographs of the neighborhood kids, weddings, church gatherings and other events as a side business. As members of the Waco community continue to provide names through the Feedback system, the Portal team will add the information to the records. This is an example of crowdsourcing, which basically means a group or organization puts out call for assistance and relies on a voluntary group of individuals to answer that call. The most well-known example of this is probably Wikipedia. Considering the success seen in identifying the photographs and subjects, the Portal hopes to widen the scope of its crowdsourcing, and will work with several partners, including the Texas Fashion Collection. With the help of people who were there, and who can remember the places, people, and events, the Portal is helping to preserve and make available many important segments of history that would otherwise be lost. –submitted by Tara Carlisle, Project Development Librarian, External Relations digital_libraries_collection_highlight
Posted: 07/30/2012

When Texas Was in Mexico and Other Interesting Tidbits

One of more than 12,000 maps in The Portal to Texas History, this image shows Mexico dominating the southwest and an “unexplored region” in the northwest (now San Francisco). This map, which belongs to the University of Texas at Arlington, is one of more than 12,000 maps in The Portal to Texas History. It was created in 1830 and reveals a very young United States, showing Mexico dominating the southwest and an “unexplored region” in the northwest (now San Francisco). The Portal has many types of maps, including soil surveys, US topographical maps, illustrated bird’s-eye views, and Texas county maps to name a few. Many of them have rarely been seen because of their delicate condition and now are viewed by thousands of people every day through the Portal. Here’s a tip: most of our maps can be viewed “up close” by using the “zoom” feature to see the tiniest detail. Learn more at https://texashistory.unt.edu/help/guide/viewing_maps/. –submitted by Tara Carlisle, Project Development Librarian, External Relations digital_libraries_collection_highlight
Posted: 07/26/2012

Library In the News: Library Collection Includes Revolutionary Rhetoric

The UNT Rare Book and Texana Collections is home to a pamphlet written by revolutionary war era journalist Thomas Paine. The pamphlet includes what famous phrase? A. I have not yet begun to fight. B. These are the times that try men’s souls. C.  Four score and seven years ago … D. We few, we happy few, we band of brothers. The correct answer is B: These are the times that try men’s souls. Read Full Story: Fun Fact: Library collection includes revolutionary rhetoric special_collections_in_the_news_resource_highlight
Posted: 07/24/2012

UNT Music Library Celebrates Don Gillis Centennial

“Nothing has been left out of here except a brief mention of the spawning habits of the lamprey eel and a recipe for fried grits.” – Don Gillis, The Unfinished Symphony Conductor (1967) The UNT Music Library celebrates the 100th birthday of Don Gillis, a musician, composer, educator, and producer, and UNT alumnus (MM, 1941) who had some impact on nearly every major institution of higher education in North Texas, including Texas Christian University, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Southern Methodist University, Dallas Baptist University, and the University of North Texas. Gillis was born in Cameron, Missouri on June 17, 1912. After moving to Texas in 1930, he studied composition with Don Mixson at Texas Christian University, and then worked as a band director at TCU, during which time he also played trombone in the staff orchestra for the Fort Worth radio station WBAP, directed a symphony at Polytechnic Baptist Church in Fort Worth, taught at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and Fort Worth Public Schools, and composed prolifically. Gillis’ early compositions established traits that endured throughout his career, with an emphasis on American and sacred themes, good-humored optimism, and the influence of American music, and particularly jazz. The early 1940s were a period of rapid transition for Gillis, as he was awarded the first master’s degree in music composition at UNT (then North Texas State Teachers College) in 1941 for his Symphony No. 1: An American Symphony, and quickly moved from being Director of Productions at WBAP (1941-43) to being a producer for NBC Radio in Chicago (1943), and a producer and script writer for the NBC Symphony Orchestra, directed by Arturo Toscanini in New York City, a year later. Gillis’ Symphony 5 ½: A Symphony for Fun (1947), premiered by Arthur Fiedler with the Boston Pops, and was one of few American works performed by Toscanini, who pronounced Gillis’ name “Zhee-li.” In 1965, Gillis discussed the genesis of that symphony, and his working relationship with Toscanini (Track 5). Later that year, he described Toscanini’s high praise for Symphony No. 5 ½ (Track 10): He had decided to become a conductor instead of a composer, but he said, “you know, I didn’t have my ‘C-major chord’ like Beethoven. You can hear a Beethoven and immediately know it’s Beethoven … You have found your ‘C-major chord’.” Upon Toscanini’s retirement in 1954, NBC disbanded its orchestra, but Gillis played a major role in reconstituting it as the Symphony of the Air, as president of its supervising organization, the Symphony Foundation of America. In its first season, Gillis accompanied the orchestra on a State Department-sponsored tour of Asia. After serving as the Sunday producer for NBC Radio’s Monitor program in 1955-56 and as vice president of the Interlochen Music Camp in Michigan from 1958 through 1961, Gillis produced the series Toscanini: The Man Behind the Legend for NBC radio, presented by announcer Ben Grauer, from 1963-1967, including a special series for the centennial of Toscanini’s birth. Gillis returned to Texas and served as chair of the music department of Southern Methodist University in Dallas from 1967 to 1968, and as the chair of the arts department and director of instructional media at Dallas Baptist College from 1968 until 1973. While at DBC, Gillis assisted significantly with the UNT (then NTSU) Music Library’s acquisition of the WBAP radio orchestra’s sheet music collection. In April of 1974, Gillis was honored as a distinguished NT alumnus, and in September of the same year, announced plans to donate his collection of scores, papers, tapes, and photos to the Music Library. In 1973, Gillis took the position of Chair of the Institute of Media Arts at the University of South Carolina, where he remained until his death in 1978. A century after his birth, Gillis leaves behind a twin legacy for music in America, through his own compositions, and through his work with Toscanini. The Music Library is pleased to maintain his collection for the continued use of scholars and musicians. Don Gillis Collection music_collection_highlight_resource_highlight
Posted: 07/10/2012

Future of the Federal Depository Library Program

Recently several national organizations have started letter writing campaigns to express their dissatisfaction with GPO regulations. Some depository librarians are concerned that the current sentiments of these large academic institutions leading the campaigns against the Government Printing Office are going to cause Congress to eliminate funding for the Federal Depository Library Program entirely. They are already significantly reducing funding for essential services like FDSys. libraries_in_the_news
Posted: 07/03/2012

Commencement Past and Present in the Digital Collections

On a university campus, “May” is nearly synonymous with “graduation” for those lucky students who have completed their programs. There is no shortage of materials in The Portal to Texas History and the UNT Digital Library documenting commencement exercises, including historical UNT ceremonies. On a university campus, “May” is nearly synonymous with “graduation” for those lucky students who have completed their programs. There is no shortage of materials in The Portal to Texas History and the UNT Digital Library documenting commencement exercises, including historical UNT ceremonies. There are more than 250 images in the Portal relating to graduation ceremonies and portraits, including 22 photosfrom UNT ceremonies in 2009 and 2010. For a historical perspective, there are several turn-of-the-20th-century programs and announcements for ceremonies at “Texas Normal College.” And, according to the 1961 North Texas State College yearbook, the fall graduates numbered 349 - the largest winter commencement on record at the time. To see more graduation-related items, visit the Portal or the Digital Library. Congratulations to all of our graduates in the Libraries! –submitted by Hannah Tarver, Head, Digital Projects Unit digital_libraries_did_you_know_collection_highlight
Posted: 06/08/2012

Historic War Department Manuals Online

Nearly a hundred rare World War II-era War Department Manuals are now available in the UNT Digital Library–providing us with a snapshot of Army life and an understanding of the equipment and field techniques used during the war. The UNT Digital Library contains a small treasure trove of rare War Department Manuals from the World War II era. Because these documents were routinely superseded by newer editions, most libraries discarded them. We are lucky indeed that our own Government Documents Department maintained this collection for so many years–providing us with a snapshot of Army life and an understanding of the equipment and field techniques used during the war. The physical collection contains more than 400 items. So far about a hundred have been digitized and made available via the UNT Digital Library. These include War Department Field Manuals such as Dog Transportation, Chemical Decontamination Company, and Teletypewriter Switching and Relay Procedure. We also have War Department Technical Manuals such as Theory of Ballooning, Materials for Protective Concealment, and Ordnance Maintenance. The Technical Manuals have been of particular interest to museums, historical groups, and enthusiasts seeking to rebuild or maintain vintage equipment. The War Department Manuals are part of a growing selection of online materials that help us comprehend this troubled period of world history. You may also be interested in the: World War Poster Collection World War Two Collection World War Two Newsmaps –submitted by Nancy Reis, Publications Specialist, Digital Libraries Division digital_libraries_collection_highlight
Posted: 05/02/2012

La Carpa Cubana has come to town!

So just what is the Carpa Cubana? Basically, they were circus performers. The “carpas” combined traditional circus acts such as acrobats and clowns with theatrical performances such as singing, dancing, and comedy routines. Curator Amy Fulkerson of the Witte Museum wrote “The carpas have had a lasting influence on contemporary Mexican-American Theater and have created characters such as the pelado, or underdog, who used comedy to comment on working-class Mexican American life that would be familiar to today’s audience…and San Antonio was the hub of carpa activity in Texas.” –submitted by Tara Carlisle, Project Development Librarian, External Relations digital_libraries_collection_highlight
Posted: 03/28/2012
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