Florida Tech’s Oral History Collection

by Diane Newman

October is American Archives Month, a time set aside to pay homage to a special breed of people known to save things they do not need now for future use. Such folks are frequently referred to derisively as pack-rats, but when the items they squirreled away are organized into a collection that provides historical insight into a place and time, the compilation acquires significance far beyond its original worth. Sometimes its assimilated value is so great it is called “priceless.”

What if a collection does not contain tangible things, but remembrances of first hand events? What if the pioneers who built a fledgling school into an internationally respected university could be recorded for posterity? How interesting it would be to compare informal stories related by presidents and professors looking back with their own unique intellectual perspectives. Imagine how incalculable their memories and observations could be to past, present, and future students?

Hear it straight from the horses’ mouth and listen to the Oral History Collection starring Florida Tech’s pioneers. A video display will be onsite in Evans Library during Open Access Week beginning on October 20th or visit Evans Library online to view video recordings at: http://lib.fit.edu/digital-collections/