The GNOA Newsletter is published three times each year in the Spring, Fall, and Winter.
Next Meeting:
Wednesday, April 26, 2000
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Spring Meeting
Our Spring meeting is being hosted by Loyola University's Special Collections, on Wednesday, April 26, 2000, at 5:30 in the evening. The meeting will be in the Multimedia Class Room 1 located in the new Monroe Library. The agenda will include a proposal by the Family History Center, of The Church of Christ of Latter Day Saints to put the Jews of New Orleans: An Archival Guide online.
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Winter 1999 Meeting Minutes:
The winter meeting was held on 13 December 1999 in Jones Hall on the Tulane University Campus. Members in attendance were Susan Tucker, Rebecca Hankins, Rob Sherer, Carol Bartels, Art Carpenter, Sr. Dorothy Dawes, Wayne Everard, Kathy Lang, Theresa LeFevre, Bill Meneray, Philip McLeod, Rosalee McReynolds, Lee Miller, Ray Nussbaum, Bill Reeves, Sally Reeves, Irene Wainwright, and Bob Whitman. Susan Tucker opened the meeting by thanking Bill Meneray and Tulane for hosting our meeting. Thanks was also expressed to Longue Vue and Lydia Schmalz for hosting our autumn meeting. Susan called for the minutes of the autumn meeting to be approved and it was moved and seconded from the floor that the autumn meeting minutes, as they appeared in the winter Newsletter, be approved. The Treasurer's report was then given by Rob Sherer. The organization has $3,301.28 in its account. Carol Bartels, speaking for the nomination committee, announced the candidates for office. The candidates for office were Ray Nussbaum for President, Siva Blake for Secretary, and Rob Sherer for Treasurer. There were no nominations from the floor and it was moved and seconded that the candidates selected for office be approved. Susan Tucker proceeded with the organization's old business. Our archival guide to the Jews of New Orleans is still selling well. It was brought up that we should look into submitting the book for an award and to try to get some press for the book in The Times-Picayune. Sally Reeves volunteered to look into prizes for which the book could be submitted. It was mentioned that we might try to get a mention of the book in the genealogical column that appears in the Sunday Times-Picayune. The GNOA has its own web page now, the new address is: nutrias.org/gnoa/gnoa.htm. The 1999 winter Newsletter was up for viewing. It was also noted that the membership is posted and if anyone required any changes to notify Irene Wainwright or Carol Bartels. It was announced that the "Carnival Guide" would be added to the web page shortly and that those institutions which would like to supply an image to jazz up the page should submit those images to the keepers of the web page. Susan Tucker presented a brief summary of the members' responses to the survey of continuing education and information needs. The survey was sponsored by the National Forum on Archival Continuing Education (NFACE). A full report on this survey will be available at the Spring 2000 meeting. A GNOA educational committee was formed to help members become aware of educational opportunities. Members of the new committee are Kathy Lang, Susan Tucker, Philip McLeod, and Rebecca Hankins. The business portion of the meeting closed with the Presidential Report by Susan Tucker.
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Archival News from New Orleans
University of New Orleans Marie Windell (UNO) presented a paper on Indian land titles in Louisiana Supreme Court cases* and chaired a session on the Border Civil War for the Southwest Conference, sponsored by the National Archives and Texas Christian University in Fort Worth in February. She also arranged a presentation during Black History Month of a documentary by Rachel Emanuel on the life of A. P. Tureaud, the attorney who fought for desegregation in New Orleans schools and other civil rights, "Journey for Justice." Tureaud's letters to the Orleans Parish School Board are in the collections of the Library. *Ms. Windell's paper was entitled "How the mighty have fallen: The antebellum Indian from landowner to occupant to exile in one generation."
New Orleans Public Library
New accessions: The City Archives has also received seventeen scrapbooks of newspaper clippings and several scrapbooks of photographs (ca. 1947-1983, with gaps) from the New Orleans Recreation Department, as well as building plans from the Historic Districts/Landmarks Commission and the Department of Safety and Permits.
Staff News:
Online: New Orleans Public Library is creating a database of the more than 7000 negatives in the Louisiana Division's Works Progress Administration Photograph Collection; the database is being added to NUTRIAS as sections, each devoted to a specific WPA project, are completed. In addition, volunteers are assisting in scanning the negatives and selected images are being added to the online database. Master files of the photographs are being retained on CD-ROM. Also new in the "Photographs" link in NUTRIAS are scanned images from the Robert Tallant Photograph Collection (66 images), the "Walter Cook Keenan Photograph Collection" (13 images), and an artificial collection of Recent Additions to the Louisiana Photograph Collection. All of these collections can be found at nutrias.org/photos/photolist.htm. Also new in the "Fact Finders" link in NUTRIAS is an online version of the City Archives/WPA compiled Alphabetical Index of Changes in Street Names, Old and New Period 1852 to Current Date, Dec. 1st 1938. NUTRIAS is indebted to a faithful volunteer (in St. Louis!) who converted the typewritten index into a database so that this helpful tool can be offered to researchers. The index is available at nutrias.org/facts/facts.htm.
Exhibits:
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St. Mary's Dominican Archives
The Religious Community Archivists of Greater New Orleans are busy putting together an anthology of brief biographies of (vowed) religious women and men who have ministered in Louisiana. Dorothy Dawes, OP, of the Dominican Sisters, Congregation of St. Mary, and Charles Nolan, archivist for the Archdiocese of New Orleans, are working together to gather the manuscripts for publication in the not too distant future. Do visit our web site and sign the guest book!
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Touro Infirmary Archives
An article by Catherine C. Kahn, archivist, "Touro Infirmary and the New Orleans Jewish Community," has appeared in the February issue of Jewish News, publication of the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans. Also, Kahn spoke in January to Temple Sinai, on "Why is the New Orleans Jewish Community Different from all other Southern Jewish Communities?"
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Newcomb College Center for Research on Women
Newcomb College Center for Research on Women Showcases Legendary New Orleans Restaurateurs, April 15-May 8. Since the earliest days of New Orleans' existence, the locals have prided themselves on their magnificent cuisine. At first unsure of how to prepare the natural provisions of Louisiana, the first Europeans and Africans were forced to adapt their traditional dishes to the seafood, game and fruits of the region. They achieved early fame and now the Newcomb College Center for Research on Women, Tulane University, pays tribute to their late nineteenth and early twentieth century descendants. The New Orleans-based Center would especially like the public to know about three restaurateurs -- Elizabeth Begué, Marie Esparbe, and Corinne Dunbar. An exhibit on these three will open on April 15, to be held in conjunction with the 47th Annual Tulane Education Conference entitled, Cuisine de la Coeur - New Orleans Love Affair With Food. The exhibit will feature photographs and written accounts documenting the lives of Corinne Dunbar, Marie Esparbe and Elizabeth Begué as well as menus, china and other artifacts from the restaurants. These historical restaurateurs will be honored by chefs of today who will prepare dishes that were once featured on the menus of Begués, Corinne Dunbar's and Maylies for the exhibits opening. Corinne Dunbar's, located on lower St. Charles Avenue, was in operation from the mid-1930s until the 1970s. Corinne Dunbar ran the restaurant from her home until her death in 1947 when it was taken over by her daughter. Famous for its recipes such as Oysters Dunbar, Corinne Dunbar's was a hot spot for friendly luncheons and dinners in the Uptown district. Maylies was opened originally as a coffee shop in the Poydras Market by Madame Esparbe. In 1876, it moved to a larger building across the street, noted for the wisteria vine that coiled about its facade. It soon became a famous restaurant around the world, and remained a New Orleans favorite until its closing in 1986. Begués began in 1863 as Dutreys Coffee House, a Decatur Street cafe run by Madame Begué and her first husband. She remarried after his death and the restaurants name was changed to Begués in 1880. Breakfast at Begués became nationally known during the Cotton Exposition of 1885 as visitors discovered the unique experience of dining for at least three hours on what was known as a second breakfast. The research is headed by Susan Tucker, Curator of Archives at the Newcomb College Center for Research on Women. Says Susan, "Oftentimes, when establishing a New Orleanian dining history, we forget the influence that women had on cuisine. We hope to showcase their participation, as well as those who helped them." She is assisted by visiting scholar Dr. Karen Leathem, who is writing the biographies of the three women, and two student research assistants. The Culinary History Group of New Orleans is co-sponsoring the exhibit along with the Newcomb Center and providing a wide range of support for the project. The Culinary Collection at the Newcomb College Center for Research on Women contains over one thousand cookbooks and other books concerned with culinary history dating from the 1830s to the present. Areas of specialization include southern cooking, community cookbooks and writing on the history of food and foodways. The Culinary Collection at Newcomb College is dedicated to the promotion and preservation of regional cuisine and its history.
For more information, please contact: |
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Latin American Library
The Pal and Elisabeth Kelemen Collection, a recent donation to the Latin American Library's Photographic Archive, consists of over 2500 images, which principally document religious architecture and art in Mexico, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia. Philip S. MacLeod, the Manuscripts Curator, is currently working on a database of the collection, which will serve as a prototype, for a consolidated database of all the LAL's photographic collections. Mr. MacLeod is also organizing a series of photo exhibits from the Kelemen Collection. The current exhibit "A Journey Through El Dorado: Images of Colombia" from the Kelemen Collection runs through May 15th. The LAL's Manuscript Archive is now the home for the Christopher Day Collection, a unique group of studies of the Jacaltec Mayan language of Western Guatemala. This is only collection of materials relating to the Jacaltec language known to be available in the United States. Another project of the LAL's Manuscripts Division is an update of the Central American Political Ephemera Collection. The 20 year-old card file is being reformatted and the descriptions of all items are being refined, prior to the collection's microfilming by the Norman Ross Company.
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The Historic New Orleans Collection
Director appointed: Ms. Lawrence has served the Collection for more than 20 years as registrar, collections manager, and acting director and has been active in the American Association of Museums, Louisiana Association of Museums, and Southeastern Museums Conference. Ms. Lawrence is also the author of Before Disaster Strikes, a disaster-planning manual, and several preservation and conservation guidebooks. "It's always a pleasure to promote from within the organization," said Mary Louise Christovich, president of the Kemper and Leila Williams Foundation, "Priscilla's leadership ability and extensive knowledge of museum operations will help guide the Collection to new heights in the new millennium."
WRC 5th Annual Symposium: "France and Louisiana: Journée d'Étude" will be repeated on May 6, 2000, in Giverny, France at the Musée d'Art Amércain. THNOC is offering a tour to France, May 3-10. For further information please call Peter McLean, Ltd., at (504) 833-6275 or the receptionist at the Williams Research Center (504) 598-7171.
Exhibition News:
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Archival News from around The U.S.
Processing Grants Available for Physics, Astronomy and Geophysics Collections The Center for History of Physics of the American Institute of Physics is pleased to announce its 2000 program of Grants to Archives. The grants are intended to make accessible records, papers, and other primary sources which document the history of modern physics and allied fields (such as astronomy, geophysics, and optics). Grants can be up to $10,000 each and can be used only to cover direct expenses connected with preserving, inventorying, arranging, describing, or cataloging appropriate collections. Expenses may include acid-free storage materials and staff salary/benefits but not overhead.
The AIP History Center's mission is to help preserve and make known the history of modern physics and allied fields,
and this grant program is intended to help support significant work to make original sources accessible to researchers.
Preference will accordingly be given to medium size or larger projects for which the grant will be matched from other
sources or by the parent organization. To apply send a letter of no more than three pages describing the nature and
research significance of the collection(s), plan of work, and budget, along with preliminary inventory (if available) and
staff vitae by July 1, 2000 to: The 2000 grants are funded by the Friends of the Center for History of Physics. For grant guidelines or for more information on the Center and its programs, check our Web site at www.aip.org/history/grntgde.htm, or call 301-209-3165. Deadline for receipt of applications is July 1, 2000. The program is offered annually as funds permit. |
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Founders of Old Mobile Society Organized!
After months and years of discussion and planning, the Founders of Old Mobile Society was formed in November 1999 in Mobile Alabama. Initial officers selected are Elizabeth Mayrose, President; Jeanne-Félicie Mercier, Vice-President; Villie Frugé Moore, Secretary; Carole Quail, Treasurer; and Gloria Wier, Historian.
Any proven descendant of any founder of Old Mobile who actually lived at the 27-Mile Bluff capital town is eligible for
membership in the Society. Dues are $10.00 and members will receive certificates of admission, as well as newsletters
and listing on the master roll of membership. Write to: The purpose of the society is to promote interest in historical and genealogical research and to help contact long-lost family members and friends. Numerous family reunions will be organized for the year 2002, in connection with Mobile's celebration of the Tercentennial of its founding in 1702 as the first capital of French Louisiana.
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Library of Congress
The keystone for the Bicentennial celebrations of the Library of Congress is an exhibition about the Library's very own "founding father," Thomas Jefferson, whose personal library of 6,487 books was the seed from which the nation's library grew. Congress purchased Jefferson's library after its own collections, house in the U.S. Capitol, were burned by the British in 1814. Because of an 1851 fire in the Library, many of those original books had been lost, but the Library has been reassembling copies of the same editions of the works that Jefferson held. The reconstituted Jefferson's library should be more than 90 percent complete by April 24. The display of Jefferson's library was part of this exhibition will be the first time ever that the public will be able to view Jefferson's library. "Thomas Jefferson" will be on view in the Northwest Gallery and Pavilion of the Thomas Jefferson Building, 10 First Street S.E., from April 24 through October 31. House for the exhibition are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Saturday. By April 24 the Library's entire collection of Jefferson Papers (more than 25,000 items) will be accessible on-line at www.loc.gov.
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Legislation News
OMB Regulations for Access to Research Data Produced by Federal Grants: On August 11, 1999 the Office of Management and Budget published a request for comments in the Federal Register (Volume 64, #154, pages 43786-91) on changes meant to clarify proposed revisions in OMB Circular A-110, which deals with access to research data produced by federal grants. These new regulations are in response to Public Law 105-277, passed last October, which gives public access (via the Freedom of Information Act) to federally funded research data that has a significant impact on the policy-making process. These changes are considered by many in the scholarly community to be a significant improvement on the original draft. The new changes considerably limit the kind of data that can be requested and research material may be held in confidence until the publication of the results in a peer-reviewed journal. Database Legislation: In August 1999 the House Commerce Committee approved a slightly amended version of Representative Tom Bliley's H.R. 1858, the Consumer and Investor Access to Information Act of 1999. This bill, supported by the scholarly and library communities, provides balance between the rights of database producers and "fair use." In May 1999 Representative Howard Coble's H.R. 354, the Collections of Information Antipiracy Act of 1999, was approved by the House Judiciary Committee. This bill is similar to those introduced in the last Congress that sought broad restrictions on the use of databases, with certain narrow exemptions, and the protection of a database owner's "investment" in creating the database, even if the information itself is publicly available. The two committees hope to forge a compromise bill acceptable to all the parties concerned. Tax Legislation: On January 19, 1999 Senators Daniel Inouye of Hawaii, Paul Wellsone of Minesota and Patric Moynihan of New Yrok introduced S. 217 to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide for the treatment of charitable transfers of collections of personal papers with a separate right to control access. The bill would allow charitable tax law to include the right to control access of donated historical papers for a time period not to exceed 25 years after the creator's death in order to qualify such donations for gift and estate charitable contributions and thus avoid having to pay taxes on the donation.
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NOTES
The new GNOA website address is nutrias.org/gnoa/gnoa.htm. The GNOA "Guide to Resources in New Orleans Repositories for the Study of Carnival in New Orleans" (aka the "Mardi Gras Guide") is now online at the GNOA website. Link from the homepage or go directly to nutrias.org/gnoa/mgguide/contents.htm. Please submit any news or information you wish published in the GNOA Newsletter to Siva Blake, c/o The Williams Research Center, 410 Chartres St., NOLA 70130-2102. Please send physical mail addresses as well as e-mail addresses to Siva Blake c/o The Williams Research Center, 410 Chartres St., NOLA 70130-2102, and indicate whether or not you wish your address published in the next newsletter.
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