Preservation Internships, State Library of Massachusetts, Special Collections Department, Boston MA
Posted January 21, 2014
Preservation Internships – Spring 2014
State Library of Massachusetts – Special Collections Department, Boston, MA
Since the early nineteenth century, the State Library has continuously collected materials that reflect Massachusetts’ government, culture and history, and continues to maintain the most comprehensive collection of Massachusetts state publications in existence. Its collection has been carefully and thoughtfully gathered for over 185 years, and it forms a tremendous resource for all areas of Massachusetts research. The Library has an active program to make its collections available through public programs, exhibitions, and digitization.
State Library internships are unpaid, but provide students with valuable work experience in a unique library setting. The library is conveniently located in downtown Boston in the Massachusetts State House, one block from the Park Street MBTA station. Our operating hours are Monday through Friday, 9-5.
Internships Description
The Special Collections Department is offering two types of internships this fall to assist with preservation task: a half-time internship, for which we request a minimum commitment of four hours per day, either 9am-1pm, or 1pm-5pm; and a part-time internship, for which we request a minimum of eight hours per week, preferably in four-hour blocks.
The internships will start immediately and continue through the spring semester, with possibility of extension.
The intern will assist the Preservation Librarian in a variety of preservation/conservation projects including but not limited to: paper surface cleaning, document repairs and lining, archival rehousing, encapsulation, book and spine repairs, and cleaning/organizing the Special Collections shelving units. The ideal preservation intern will have extensive knowledge and hands-on experience/training in archives, special collections, preservation/conservation techniques.
The State Library’s Special Collections Department includes items that need special care due to their age, fragility, or format. Holdings comprise rare books, manuscripts, broadsides, newspapers, tax valuations, architectural drawings, prints and photographs, scrapbooks, and souvenirs. The collection is particularly strong in nineteenth and twentieth-century city directories, maps, and atlases.
For more information, contact the Preservation Librarian: [email protected]. To apply for this internship, please send a cover letter and resume to [email protected].