Do you have a story to tell about your experiences during this global pandemic? Curators and archivists at the Missouri History Museum want to hear from you.
The Missouri Historical Society (MHS), which operates the museum, the MHS Library & Research Center and Soldiers Memorial Military Museum, is asking St. Louisans to share their stories about how they are responding to the COVID-19 pandemic.
There are no wrong answers or wrong submissions,” said Angela Dietz, MHS director of digital initiatives. “We are looking for any and all perspectives, whether you’re on the front lines working in the medical field or as an essential employee, or you are one of the countless people just trying to figure out how to work from home, homeschool, and keep up with friends and family while social distancing.”
Dietz adds MHS is looking for any and all stories, as well as photos or videos that demonstrate people’s experiences for an initiative called “Stories of the Pandemic: A St. Louis COVID-19 Digital Archive.”
“Our normal collecting process is a formal one, and it happens at a bit slower pace—as it often takes distance from an event to realize what is important to collect; however, we didn’t want to miss an opportunity to capture stories and images while things were happening,” she explained, noting that “Stories of the Pandemic” is a more informal archive that can capture history as it’s unfolding. “When our curators and archivists are all back in the office and have some more time and perspective, we will be reviewing this material and thinking about how to incorporate it into our permanent collection.”
Dietz said there are other ways for residents of the St. Louis region to take part, even if they aren’t ready to share right now, including saving videos, photographs, documents or other physical objects related to the COVID-19 pandemic that may be donated to MHS in the future.
Current submissions will be curated and shared on social media and on its website, mohistory.org. Some of the submissions may be considered for addition to the Missouri Historical Society’s permanent collections.
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