Browse Projects
Arthur Stelfox - Diary of insects, vol. 9, July 1937- July 1938
Irish naturalist Arthur W. Stelfox makes identifying insects seem romantic. He describes “fine” and “joyous” mornings and relaxing lunches near bridges and sand dunes. And then Stelfox dives right into noting the Hymenoptera species he observes, which is arguably less romantic, but crucial to the field. In this 1937-38 field book, the naturalist travels to Wexford and Kinlough, among other destinations in Ireland. Included in this field book are his very detailed notes of the species he observed, actual specimens taped inside, and some very challenging handwriting. Come for the insects. Stay for the comradery of transcribing difficult penmanship and making Stelfox’s work more accessible with your fellow volunpeers!
District of Columbia Field Offices, Asst. Quartermaster, Letters Received, Entered in Vol. 1, Jan. 9, 1866–Nov. 17, 1866, Part 2
The Bureau of Refugees, Freemen, and Abandoned Lands, often referred to as the Freedmen’s Bureau, was established on March 3, 1865. The duties of the Freedmen’s Bureau included supervision of all affairs relating to refugees, freedmen, and the custody of abandoned lands and property. These documents come from the Records of the Field Offices for the District of Columbia, Series 2.1: Offices of Staff Officers: Assistant Quartermaster and Disbursing Officer. Please help us transcribe these records to learn more about the experiences of formerly enslaved men and women in the Washington, D.C. area during the Reconstruction Era.
District of Columbia Field Offices, Asst. Quartermaster, Letters Received, Entered in Vol. 1, Jan. 9, 1866–Nov. 17, 1866, Part 3
The Bureau of Refugees, Freemen, and Abandoned Lands, often referred to as the Freedmen’s Bureau, was established on March 3, 1865. The duties of the Freedmen’s Bureau included supervision of all affairs relating to refugees, freedmen, and the custody of abandoned lands and property. These documents come from the Records of the Field Offices for the District of Columbia, Series 2.1: Offices of Staff Officers: Assistant Quartermaster and Disbursing Officer. Please help us transcribe these records to learn more about the experiences of formerly enslaved men and women in the Washington, D.C. area during the Reconstruction Era.
Interview with Michael Asher, March 1981 - Part 3
Jan Butterfield was an art writer and critic of contemporary art who spent most of her career in California. She is best known for her writings on late twentieth century installation and craft artists, particularly those who worked in California and the American West. In Jan Butterfield’s papers at the Archives of American Art, there are 107 sound tape reels, 97 cassettes, and 1 video reel of her interviews. Jan Butterfield conducted this interview with Michael Asher in March 1981.
North Carolina Field Offices, Subordinate Field Offices: Beaufort, Endorsements Received and Sent, Volume 68, July 1867–Aug. 186
The Bureau of Refugees, Freemen, and Abandoned Lands, often referred to as the Freedmen’s Bureau, was established on March 3, 1865. The duties of the Freedmen’s Bureau included supervision of all affairs relating to refugees, freedmen, and the custody of abandoned lands and property. These documents come from the Records of the Field Offices for the State of North Carolina, Series 4.2: Subordinate Field Offices: Beaufort (Subassistant Commissioner). Please help us transcribe these records to learn more about the experiences of formerly enslaved men and women in North Carolina during the Reconstruction Era. Have questions about how to transcribe tables in these documents? View special directions here.
District of Columbia Field Offices, Asst. Quartermaster, Letters Received, Entered in Vol. 1, Jan. 9, 1866–Nov. 17, 1866, Part 1
The Bureau of Refugees, Freemen, and Abandoned Lands, often referred to as the Freedmen’s Bureau, was established on March 3, 1865. The duties of the Freedmen’s Bureau included supervision of all affairs relating to refugees, freedmen, and the custody of abandoned lands and property. These documents come from the Records of the Field Offices for the District of Columbia, Series 2.1: Offices of Staff Officers: Assistant Quartermaster and Disbursing Officer. Please help us transcribe these records to learn more about the experiences of formerly enslaved men and women in the Washington, D.C. area during the Reconstruction Era.
National Numismatic Collection - Chinese Bank Notes, Set 2
Ready for a new challenge volunpeers? Help us transcribe Chinese Bank Notes from the Smithsonian's National Numismatic Collection (NNC). 志愿者，准备好迎接新的挑战了吗？请帮助我们转录在史密斯国家钱币藏品系列中的中国银行钞据。 史密森尼国家钱币收藏集（NNC）是美国对货币和交易工具的收集。这个丰富的全球收藏集包含具有代表性的三千多年的人类历史珍贵藏品。成立于19世纪中，NNC最早的收藏来自日本，韩国和中国的文物，其中包括日本明治天皇赠送给美国总统尤利塞斯·格兰特的硬币和奖章，以及2025件东亚硬币、护身符和George Bunker Glover的私人收藏文物（1897年收到）。这些捐送物是NNC东亚藏品集的基础，随后又收购了2017年Howard F. Bowker系列。该收藏集继续增长。 在2017年至2018年期间，NNC将其8,000多份东亚硬币数字化，并提供在线公开访问为全球研究使用服务。 NNC现在正将明代至今的6000份中文笔记和纸质交易藏品数字化。数字化过程的主要挑战之一是将亚洲文字转录，音译和翻译。这对于NNC团队成员来说是十分困难的工作，无法有效地推进项目。为了继续快速分享这些藏品，我们需要您的帮助！在开始转录之前，请访问该项目的 特殊说明。 Established in the mid-19th century, several of the earliest additions to the NNC were artifacts from Japan, Korea, and China, including coins and medals gifted to President Ulysses S. Grant from Japanese Emperor Meiji (received in 1881) and the 2,025 East Asian coins, amulets, and notes from George Bunker Glover’s private collection (received in 1897). These donations were the foundation of the NNC’s East Asian holdings, which continues to grow with new acquisitions, such as the Howard F. Bowker collection in 2017. The NNC is now working to digitize 6,000 Chinese notes and paper transactional objects that range from the Ming Dynasty to the present day. One of the main challenges to the digitization process is transcription, transliteration and translation of several Asian alphabets. Sometimes this can be done quickly, but often the process is too lengthy for NNC team members to complete while moving the project forward efficiently. In order to continue to share these objects rapidly, we need your help! The transcription of these bank notes will help NNC staff figure out how best to make these objects available and more easily searchable online. Please visit the special instructions for this project before beginning transcription.
William Ockleford Oldman Archive Research Materials - Collection Ledger, 1902-1916: 1 to 33668 (Part 3)
Help us transcribe "Collection Ledger, 1902-1916: 1 to 33668 (Part 3)" from the William Ockleford Oldman Archive research materials! For instructions on how to transcribe this material, please view the project instructions page here . The William Ockleford Oldman Archive research materials are comprised of digital surrogates of the business records of Oldman held by the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa. These records include detailed information about his purchases and sales of objects including names of original sources for objects he acquired and sold. Since this provenance information is critically important to the documentation of NMAI’s collections, NMAI and Te Papa have begun a collaborative research project to make the Oldman materials available to the public for research and scholarship. William Ockleford Oldman (1879 – 1949) was a British collector and dealer of ethnographic art and European arms and armour. His business W.O. Oldman, Ethnographical Specimens, London was active between the late 1890s and 1913. Oldman purchased items from various sources including from auctions, directly from other collectors and dealers and also from many small British museums and historic houses. He held regular auctions to sell items and also reserved items for possible sale to particular private collectors, scholars, and heritage institutions including the Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation, NMAI’s predecessor institution. Ethnographic specimens with a provenance to Oldman’s business can now be found in various public institutions around the world including the National Museum of the American Indian.
National Numismatic Collection - Chinese Bank Notes, Set 3
Ready for a new challenge volunpeers? Help us transcribe Chinese Bank Notes from the Smithsonian's National Numismatic Collection (NNC). 志愿者，准备好迎接新的挑战了吗？请帮助我们转录在史密斯国家钱币藏品系列中的中国银行钞据。 史密森尼国家钱币收藏集（NNC）是美国对货币和交易工具的收集。这个丰富的全球收藏集包含具有代表性的三千多年的人类历史珍贵藏品。成立于19世纪中，NNC最早的收藏来自日本，韩国和中国的文物，其中包括日本明治天皇赠送给美国总统尤利塞斯·格兰特的硬币和奖章，以及2025件东亚硬币、护身符和George Bunker Glover的私人收藏文物（1897年收到）。这些捐送物是NNC东亚藏品集的基础，随后又收购了2017年Howard F. Bowker系列。该收藏集继续增长。 在2017年至2018年期间，NNC将其8,000多份东亚硬币数字化，并提供在线公开访问为全球研究使用服务。 NNC现在正将明代至今的6000份中文笔记和纸质交易藏品数字化。数字化过程的主要挑战之一是将亚洲文字转录，音译和翻译。这对于NNC团队成员来说是十分困难的工作，无法有效地推进项目。为了继续快速分享这些藏品，我们需要您的帮助！在开始转录之前，请访问该项目的 特殊说明。 Established in the mid-19th century, several of the earliest additions to the NNC were artifacts from Japan, Korea, and China, including coins and medals gifted to President Ulysses S. Grant from Japanese Emperor Meiji (received in 1881) and the 2,025 East Asian coins, amulets, and notes from George Bunker Glover’s private collection (received in 1897). These donations were the foundation of the NNC’s East Asian holdings, which continues to grow with new acquisitions, such as the Howard F. Bowker collection in 2017. The NNC is now working to digitize 6,000 Chinese notes and paper transactional objects that range from the Ming Dynasty to the present day. One of the main challenges to the digitization process is transcription, transliteration and translation of several Asian alphabets. Sometimes this can be done quickly, but often the process is too lengthy for NNC team members to complete while moving the project forward efficiently. In order to continue to share these objects rapidly, we need your help! The transcription of these bank notes will help NNC staff figure out how best to make these objects available and more easily searchable online. Please visit the special instructions for this project before beginning transcription.
Signlore and Storytelling: Carmel et.al.; Deaf Kaleidoscope: Radnor et.al. JUL 05 1981
The 1981 Smithsonian Folklife Festival celebrated the skills and traditions of a cultural minority who, despite their large numbers, frequently pass unnoticed: deaf and hard of hearing Americans. In recognition of the International Year of Disabled Persons, deaf participants performed "signlore," told stories emerging from Deaf culture (often with a capital D), and discussed life and experiences growing up deaf. They taught workshops on American Sign Language, displayed homemade devices to substitute for alarm clocks and doorbells, and demonstrated standardized technology such as a TTY, a machine that allows deaf people to make phone calls. Deaf visitors were invited to share jokes, riddles, stories, or puns on videotape with Smithsonian researchers. These recordings were only recently preserved and previously were inaccessible due to their advanced age and format obsolescence. Transcription of their content will provide access- for the first time - to those hard of hearing, and increase our understanding of the history of accessibility in the United States. Please view the instructions for transcribing audio collections before beginning. If you can identify the speakers, please do so using the format {SPEAKER NAME= "____" } if you cannot identify the speakers, please simply indicate when a different individual is speaking by inserting the "Speaker 1," "Speaker 2," etc. tags. For more information about the programs in these recordings, please look at the audio log sheets describing the content and speakers at each presentation.
