Assistant Website Developer, Houghton Library, Cambridge, MA

Posted December 2, 2016

I am looking for a tech-savvy student to help me get a website relating to women in the book trades off the ground. There is no one place to go to learn about the multitudinous roles held by women in the book trades during the hand-press period (ca. 1455-1830). To date, I have collected many images, written significant text, and amassed a MySQL database of over 3000 entries. The type of database can be changed if needed, but I do imagine the site to be accessed and visualized in a number of ways – display components of the site might include a graphic-rich front page; individual exposés; historical narratives; illustrations; a movable timeline; a flexible series of maps; a blog; links to a variety of sources ranging from other websites and blogs to library catalogs, OCLC, and authority data; and lists of source material. It would be key-word searchable as well as searchable by categories; examples of the latter might be time period, geographical location, specific trade, husbands, and progeny. It should have a browse function. A key feature would be crowd-sourcing to help populate it; easy-to-use forms combined with curatorial oversight would allow the site to grow in ways not possible under the drive of any one person. 

I am hoping to find someone who knows about website design and development. I am very open to whatever platform might be most suitable. I am also interested in someone with some database skills, as well as knowledge of how to extract information from other open source databases. Writers and researchers also welcome! Pay is $15.00 an hour. The number of hours per week is negotiable. If interested, please contact me, Karen Nipps, at [email protected].