This post is part of the Intergenerational Conversations series. Review of Helen Willa Samuels, “Who Controls the Past,” American Archivist 49, no. 2 (Spring 1986): 109–24, https://doi.org/10.17723/aarc.49.2.t76m2130txw40746; and Anke Voss-Hubbard, “‘No Documents—No History’: Mary Ritter Beard and the Early History of Women’s Archives,” American Archivist 58, no. 1 (1995): 16–30, https://doi.org/10.17723/aarc.58.1.hr300127g3142157. By Melissa Smith, Church … Continue reading Reappraising Appraisal in a Post-Custodial Era
Category: 2026
Intergenerational Conversations 2026: Reflecting on Change
By Rose Buchanan and Stephanie Luke, Reviews Co-Editors [PDF Full Text] "If anything troubles archivists, it is change. Our days are devoted to minimizing the effects of change upon the materials we care for. . . . We pay homage to permanence, to constancy, to stability, and to structure. . . . but in the … Continue reading Intergenerational Conversations 2026: Reflecting on Change
Umbra Search: African American History
https://umbrasearch.org/ Reviewed by Mattie Clear, Head of Research and Engagement & Assistant Professor, James Madison University Libraries, Harrisonburg, VA [PDF Full Text] Figure 1. Screenshot of the homepage of Umbra Search, https://umbrasearch.org/. Umbra Search: African American History is a digital resource created in 2014 by the Givens Collection of African American Literature at the University … Continue reading Umbra Search: African American History
The Banned Bookshop of Maggie Banks: A Lesson in Power Dynamics and Changes
Review of The Banned Bookshop of Maggie Banks. By Shauna Robinson. Naperville, IL.: Sourcebooks Landmark, November 2022. 330 pp. Softcover. $16.99 ISBN-9781728246444 Reviewed by Alyssa Noch, Master of Arts in Public History, Specialization in Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s History from Wayne State University [PDF Full Text] This review contains spoilers for The Banned Bookshop of … Continue reading The Banned Bookshop of Maggie Banks: A Lesson in Power Dynamics and Changes
Pioneering Women Archivists in Early 20th Century England
By Elizabeth Shepherd. London: Routledge, 2025. 228 pp. $61.99 (eBook); $200.00 (Hardback). eBook ISBN 9781003640479; Hardback ISBN 9781041073741. Reviewed by Katy Sternberger, CA, DAS; Archivist, Portsmouth Athenaeum [PDF Full Text] Discussions of archival labor have become increasingly important as archivists draw attention to the formerly obscured physical, intellectual, and emotional work involved in managing archives. … Continue reading Pioneering Women Archivists in Early 20th Century England
The American Archivist Reviews Portal 