AHA is hosting its first free online international digitization game event, facilitated by Sean Macmillan of King’s College London on Friday, August 23rd from 10 am – 11:30 am. The theme for this gaming event is Digital Preservation!
A little bit about our facilitator Sean Macmillan.
“Sean Macmillan is a digital collections manager based in King’s College London. His background is in archives, and has previously worked for the University of London, University of Oxford, Liverpool Hope University, and a family private estate. He has a passion for games and learning, and has organized a number of digital preservation games events in the past two years”
If you are an expert in digital preservation or want to build a better understanding and awareness of best practice in a fun and friendly environment, then please join us! As this is the first time hosting a Digital Preservation Game event, seating is limited. To sign up, use the link below. Deadline to sign up is August 20th.
This Saturday, July 27th AHA will tour the Houston Media Source Public Access Television and Net Radio Station from 10AM to 1PM! If you cannot attend the tour but want to get together, we welcome you to attend the post-tour lunch at Roostar Vietnamese Grill ~1PM.
This event will include:
tour of facilities
viewing historic/vintage AV media
discussion of Beta Tape and DV Tape digitization
discussion of community archiving and the role of local TV media
The tour will start at 10AM, so plan to arrive a little bit early to park and get settled.
Tour address: 410 Roberts St, Houston, TX 77003
Lunch address: 2929 Navigation Blvd Suite 190, Houston, TX 77003
Parking is limited there are 10 spaces in the parking lot, plus street parking. We highly recommend carpooling to avoid parking fees.
If you want to bring someone who is not an AHA member or you have not paid your dues for 2024, all are welcome to attend, but please consider renewing your dues or making a small donation ($3+ dollar donations will get you a sticker!) https://houstonarchivists.square.site . Not sure about your membership status? Just reach out to a board member.
AHA! is touring the 1940 Terminal Air Museum & Archive on Saturday, June 8th. There is ample on site parking and the museum has kindly offered to have refreshments on hand for our visit!
The 1940 Terminal Air Museum, operated by the Houston Aeronautical Heritage Society (HAHS) is located in Houston at the William P. Hobby Airport. It first opened its doors on September 28, 1940 and is a beautiful art deco structure designed by noted local architect Joseph Finger. During its heyday, the terminal housed the airport administrative functions and the airport control tower, and was the only terminal in Houston until 1954. Today, the terminal houses the museum’s collections focused on Houston civil aviation history.
The tour will start at 10:30 am, and Michael Bludworth, the museum’s volunteer historian will give us a brief history of the aviation industry in Houston, and the terminal (he is a wonderful storyteller)! Participants will have an opportunity to roam the museum for about 20 – 30 minutes and then gather together again for a tour of the Archive. The Archive (not a large space) is housed in a building about 100 yards from the museum, and is a walkable distance. But depending on the heat, it may be good to drive. After the tour we will have lunch at Don Carlos Cantina and Mexican restaurant (8385 Broadway St. 77061), not far from the museum.
UPDATE: The Bayou City Policing History Harvest Day has a new time and date, with a revised schedule.
New rescheduled time and date: June 1st, 10 am to 2 pm.
Scanning and Digitization of Artifacts and Collecting Oral Histories: 10 am to 1 pm
Film followed by Q&A- Un Trip: raúlrsalinas and The Poetry of Liberation at 1 pm.
You are invited to come share your stories at the Bayou City Policing – History Harvest Day at the Leonel J. Castillo Community Center. A history harvest is an event devoted to recording and preserving the records of the community. In this case, we encourage you to bring your stories, photographs, newspaper clippings, and personal artifacts from your family records. This History Harvest aims to collect stories and artifacts about the historical relationship between Mexican American/Latinx communities and the Houston Police Department. Our hope is to collect stories that emphasize instances of conflict and cooperation.
Select recorded interview excerpts and scans from the Harvest will be included within the organizers’ digital repository. Once scanned, the original photos and documents will be returned to the patron. In addition, high-quality scans of the artifacts will be provided to community members to reproduce prints and preserve the original photos/documents.
In partnership with the Recovering the US Hispanic Literary Heritage, the Collective of Progressive Educators (COPE), and Mario A. Salinas at the Leonel Castillo Community Center, we are inviting la gente de Houston to come and share your stories and experiences. the door is open to the community, activists, students, educators, archivists, researchers, advocates, and law enforcement. We will also be screening Raúl r salinas and the Poetry of Liberation Documentary Film followed by a Q&A with the Austin-based filmmakers.
The Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center, part of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission, invites you to stargaze with Village Creek State Park Interpreter Alex Stamatis on Friday, June 14 at the Center’s Amateur Astronomy Night.
Stamatis will lead visitors on a tour of the night sky from 8:30 p.m. until approximately 10 p.m. Learn to locate constellations and view some of the season’s most fascinating celestial objects using telescopes, binoculars, and the naked eye!
Join the fun on the Center’s grounds at 650 FM 1011, Liberty, Texas. (Back-Up Date for Inclement Weather/Cloud Cover is Friday, June 21).
You are invited to an AHA! exclusive tour of the historic Glenwood Cemetery Archive on Saturday, May 18th with the option of hanging out on the grounds after for a picnic – so please bring your lunchboxes.
The Glenwood Cemetery was established as a private cemetery in 1871 and is located west of Downtown Houston overlooking Buffalo Bayou. The design of this cemetery was special as it broke the typical grid layout of Houston cemeteries and instead was based on the principles of 19th century romantic garden cemeteries. In addition to its use as a resting place for many prominent Texans, Glenwood Cemetery hosted visitors who utilized the space as a park – as public parks didn’t exist back then as they do now. In 2022, Glenwood Cemetery created an Archive (and completed the groundwork on it in 2023), dedicated to the history of the cemetery encompassing over 150 years of history. The Archive collection is composed of 20 collections and 2 special collections.
What to Expect:
The tour will be indoors; however, resources will be provided to anyone who wishes to explore the grounds to see flora/fauna and art collection along the difference family lots.
Parking will be available in the front parking lot and additional vehicles can park along the brick curb paths- be sure to not block the main gate or any lanes.
They have public restrooms on site but no water fountain, so please bring your own water bottles!
Limited Slots for Tour, RSVP Today!
We are limited to 25 people so please RSVP as soon as possible. We have included a waitlist space as well; in case anyone needs to cancel their RSVP as the event gets closer.
Please RSVP via the link below and be sure to include your preferred contact information that you will have access to the day of – in case any changes occur:
Join us for our next Archivist Meetup which on Saturday, April 13th at 12:30 in Katy! Since our Spring Meeting is the same week, we are going to do a social event this time around in Katy Asian Town, which is a shopping center off of Grand Parkway. It boasts a fantastic assortment of restaurants and bars with cuisines from all over east Asia. There is also Kinokuniya, a Japanese bookstore which not only has manga but all kinds of Japanese stationery (great for paper nerds! 🥸🤓), a cat café called Cat Haven ($20 dollar entry fee but all the kitties), and an H-Mart (so many good snacks!).
We will meet up in front of Tan Tan Wok at 12:30 and have lunch together and then decide where we want to explore. This is just a fun hangout but it can be a great way to network and discuss issues you might be having with your collections or to just vent with fellow archival folks! You can RSVP via this Google Sheet. I do not think that Tan Tan Wok takes reservations, but I would like to be able to let them know how many might be in our party when we get there. We look forward to seeing y’all then!
Exclusive Sticker for Old, Weird Houston 2024. The stickers features a magnolia flower, steam train engine with orange slices for wheels, symbols of Houston’s history.
We have another exclusive sticker for this year’s Old, Weird Houston event. Visit us at the Houston Archives Bazaar at the annual Old, Weird Houston at The Orange Show on Saturday, March 30th 10am – 6pm. Grab your 2024 exclusive Old, Weird Houston sticker while supplies last!
The archives bazaar represents some of the many diverse repositories and collections around the city. Archivists will be there to showcase their collections. Come and get to know the local area archives and the history they preserve for Houstonians and researchers all over the world.
Get to know the Magnolia City sticker
The Magnolia City sticker features historical symbols from Houston’s past and gives a shout out to The Orange Show, our hosts for the Houston Archives Bazaar for the past two years.
Get to know the Magnolia City sticker – (1) You can get the exclusive sticker at the 2024 Old, Weird Houston event on 3/30 at The Orange Show. (2) Learn more about Archivists of the Houston Area and the event at our website. (3) Magnolia Flower. Forests of wild magnolia trees flourished on the east side of town. (4) Magnolia City is Houston’s earliest nicknames. (5) Locomotive symbolizes progress and forward thinking. It has been featured on the city’s seal since 1840. (6) Orange slices honor The Orange Show Center for Visionary Art and the “Artist in Everyone”. (7) Mossy Green Background resembles the color of the bayous as well as the pollen that covers the city every Spring, and most especially it represents the majestic live oaks that grow throughout the city.
Magnolia Flower for the “Magnolia City”
Houston has acquired many nicknames throughout it’s illustrious 188 years of existence. Bayou City, Space City, Clutch City, and H-Town to name a few. Magnolia City was one of the earliest monikers. It harkens back to a growing, bustling town in Southeast Texas where wild magnolia trees flourished on the east side of town, near Harrisburg.
Locomotive
The steam locomotive has been featured on the Seal of the City of Houston since it’s initial adoption in 1840. It symbolizes progress as well as aspirations for the future. From the humble beginnings at the confluence of the White Oak and Buffalo Bayous, Houston became the hub of industry in the Southwest by the end of the 19th century thanks to the railroads. At its peak, Houston was a distributing point for as many as ten railroad companies.
Map of Houston, The Magnolia City, May 21, 1898. A printed engraving from the “Texas World” newspaper depicting Houston as the hub of manufacturing and distributing for Texas. [University of Houston Libraries Digital Collections, https://id.lib.uh.edu/ark:/84475/do06149p703 ]
Orange Slices
The wheels of orange slices on the locomotive honor The Orange Show Center for Visionary Art and The Orange Show Monument that they preserve as a celebration for the “Artist in Everyone.” Nothing captures the unique, creative, artistic spirit of Houston and Southeast Texas than The Orange Show. The events and folk art installations that they preserve will inspire Houstonians for generations.
Mossy Green Background
The mossy green background resembles the color of the bayous as well as the pollen that covers the city every Spring, and most especially it represents the majestic live oaks that grow throughout the city. Did you know that live oaks are the most populous tree in Hermann Park? You can find almost 1,800 of them within the 445-acre park. While we can’t say for certain that the live oak is the most populous tree is the Houston metropolitan area, they are definitely ubiquitous and one of the most picturesque features around town.
The annual Old, Weird Houston at The Orange Show is on March 30th. The event flyer is available to download.
Download.
Print.
Post around town.
Tell everyone about the event.
This event features an archives bazaar, a day-long schedule of speakers and panels, along with food trucks and vendors. Find all links and details at here on the AHA! website or at on The Orange Show website.
We are busy filling out the year with events, professional development opportunities, repository tours, and get-togethers all over the Houston and Southeast TX area. We’ve already had 2 events this year and planning many more. Hope to see y’all soon!
![Map of Houston, The Magnolia City, May 21, 1898. A printed engraving from the "Texas World" newspaper depicting Houston as the hub of manufacturing and distributing for Texas. [University of Houston Libraries Digital Collections, https://id.lib.uh.edu/ark:/84475/do06149p703]](https://houstonarchivists.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/3f462594w_files_38a8bf33-9478-42e9-b8fd-81243c19eaa4.jpg)
