Ted Grant. “At Matilda Newman’s Store.” Africville Nova Scotia, c. 1964-1969. Library and Archives Canada / e002283006.
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Tag: oral history (Page 3 of 6)
Gar Lunney, “One male and two female skiers in a class at a winter resort in the Laurention mountains of Québec,” February 1953, Library and Archives Canada. Copyright: Expired .
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By dave_7 from Lethbridge, Canada (Crowsnest Pass) CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Note from Andrea: Today we have a very special guest post from Laura Larsen on the adventure that is oral history! As a fellow oral historian, this is right up my alley. Enjoy!
Laura Larsen is a PhD Candidate in the Department of History at the University of Saskatchewan. Her dissertation explores rail rationalization and agricultural policy under the Pierre Trudeau government. It focuses on the tensions between government, farmers, grain companies, and railways created by attempts to modernize the grain handling and transportation system as well as the substantial changes to the underlying structure of prairie agriculture caused by these changes.
It would not be an exaggeration to say that oral history changed my life. If I had not conducted oral histories I probably would be doing a different dissertation project than I am.
On paper, doing oral history sounds relatively straight forward. Do some background research. Come up with a list of questions. Find a person. Ask them your questions. However, in reality, oral history is a messy and complicated process that, while at times extraordinarily difficult, is immensely rewarding on both a professional and personal level. In this blog post, I’m going to talk about my personal experiences doing oral history, how the interviews I conducted for my master’s thesis shaped my doctoral dissertation, and, hopefully, convince you to integrate some into your future research.
“Nepachee stretching a seal skin on a frame.” C. 1961. Cape Dorset, N.W.T. [Cape Dorset (Kingnait), Nunavut]. Rosemary Gilliat. Library and Archives Canada, e010799803. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
J.T. Henderson, “A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year: Tobogganing.” 1884. Toronto Lithographing Company. Library and Archives Canada, Arch. Ref. No. R11648, album 9, item 34 ; Copyright: Expired.
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“A merry Christmas to you.” Ephemera. 1912. New York: Gold Media Art. Osborne Collection of Early Children’s Literature. Toronto Public Library. Public Domain.
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Christmas Card. c.1923-1928. This card is part of the Canadian Artists Series by Rous & Mann Ltd. Library and Archives Canada, Acc. No. 1991-12-38 Gift of Joan and W. Ross Murray, Whitby, Ontario. Copyright: Expired.
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Gertrude / Truth-Freedom-Virtue – these, dear child, have power— If rightly cherish’d, to uphold, sustain, And bless thy spirit in its darkest hour! A Christmas card from the Osborne Collection of Early Children’s Literature. 1910s. OSB-CARDS-0009. Public Domain.
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Woman (possibly Rosemary Gilliat Eaton) wearing a winter coat with a fur-trimmed hood and using photographic equipment to make images of frost on the windows. Shilly Shally Lodge, Gatineau Park. N.D. Rosemary Gilliat Eaton / Library and Archives Canada, No. R12438
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Three young women wearing knitted sweaters seated on a bench in the snow. Rosemary Gilliat Eaton in the middle. Shilly Shally Lodge, Gatineau Park. 1965. Rosemary Gilliat Eaton / Library and Archives Canada, No. R12438
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