Oral History Audio Preservation Project Underway

The Galveston and Texas History Center's oral history collection is about to be much more accessible. 312 cassette tapes have been sent to the Northeast Document Conservation Center (NEDCC) for audio preservation. Once they are digitized, the files will be uploaded to the Archives Catalog where they will be freely available for listening.

The cassette tapes contain interviews with notable Galvestonians and survivors of the 1900 Storm. Topics covered include civil rights, integration, the University of Texas Medical Branch, local government, gambling, and more.

Cassette tapes deteriorate over time and the content could be lost without digitization. Due to the fragility of the tapes and the importance of their content, they will be digitized in a controlled environment by audio preservation professionals. Audio preservation will be performed at NEDCC within guidelines set by the International Association of Sound and Audiovisual Archives (IASA), the Federal Agencies Digitization Guidelines Initiative (FADGI), National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), and the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (AIC). Click here to learn more about audio preservation at NEDCC.

This project is expected to be completed in the fall of 2021. Contact Lauren Martino Henry, Special Collections Manager, for more information.

2021-03-23 LMH