Archive Assistant, Department of Public Works, Portland, ME

Posted March 7, 2018

Summer Internship: Archive Assistant

Department of Public Works, Engineering Archives, City of Portland, Maine.

The archive consists of the historic records and the active records of the Department of Public Works and some records from other departments. The city dates back to the 1623 when the region was first settled and has had three names Casco, Falmouth and finally Portland. The city separated from the greater region of Falmouth when it was incorporated in 1786, so the origins of the department makes it one of the older public works departments in the country. The collection is physical and digital, with some of the plans on linen, paper or Mylar and others in digital form stored on CDs and in databases. Some of the records date back to the late 18th and beginning of the 19th century with the number increasing from 1850s onward. The collection consist of over 90,000 engineering drawings, plan sheets, and maps that document the city and city infrastructure above and below the ground. There are also thousands of site plan documents, site reports and survey field books, etc. The collection also includes a large archive of photographs that document DPW’s engineering projects. The collection and records’ finding aids are a mix of old (card indexes), a scanned form of the card files and a new database. New items are being added daily to the database and the older items are being scanned and added to the database.

Job Description

The intern will have the opportunity to work in an archive that is, like many, still trying to catch up with the modern digital archive world. The work would be hands-on both cataloging, scanning and working with the department’s engineers and surveyors, and with the general public answering questions, researching and finding old and new plans and drawings for their projects. The intern will work under the supervision and mentorship of the Engineering Archivist.

Qualifications:

• Applicant must be enrolled in a graduate program with a significant emphasis in archival management/studies.
• Applicant should have a GPA of 3.0 or higher.
• Ability to work carefully and with attention to detail. Ability to work equally well independently and with supervision. Ability and willingness to understand the mission of the Engineering Division and Archive and to follow all procedures and policies related to security and collection care. Ability to deal with the public in a friendly and informative manner.

Preferred proficiencies:

• Experience with Microsoft Excel and Access and with data entry.
• Understanding of the unique requirements of handling drawings, plans and maps, on various mediums – from linen paper to Mylar.
• Basic understanding of, and ability to read engineering drawings, plans and maps.
• Experience using large format scanners a plus.

Requirements:

• Be able to work with others.
• Work at a standing work station.
• Lift 40lb.

This is a fixed term full time (37.5hr a week), 13 week appointment, starting in June and ending in August. The position will be paid at $15.00/hr.

Please email CV, letter of interest and two references to: Dr. George Carhart, Engineering Archivist, Department of Public Works: [email protected]