Clinton P. Roberts Internship Portfolio

The Journal of the Plague Year will become a lasting memory and not just because it is preserved inside of an archive. One of the most memorable aspects will be the way our internship class grew to become a team. As we all look back to our first weeks, little did we know the scope of pedagogy we would need to experience before arriving upon these final days. Dr. Kole gave us the support we needed, but wasn’t afraid to introduce us to the “rapid” nature of a rapid response archive. The conversations of “wearing hats” became common terminology to describe all of the evolving jobs this internship would entail. Some days we were scholars thinking deeply about the concerns of silences. Other days we felt more like roving reporters gathering stories as they were developing. Our “marketing hats” were often in use as we promoted our Calls for Submissions. Undoubtedly, there were days we were required to stack our hats four high. As fledgling public historians, we accomplished all of these things and we did it together as a team. The word “team” seems the most obvious description, but for our group the most fitting term is “family.”

This moment has already come and gone, yet it’s preserved for those that look toward it. I felt the need to devote my individual time to preserving those things that were at propinquity. That being said, the “Rural Voices” collection is something near and dear to me. Near because I live in the community that inspired this collection. Dear because it’s so much more; it’s home. I created it because of this familiarity, a familiarity that was disrupted by COVID-19 and I experienced firsthand. Moving forward, future interns will have the opportunity to continue what I have started. This collection was never meant to have only one voice and is only a reflection of its first voice. Every rural community has a wealth of history occurring and with each passing moment those voices fade. The “Rural Voices” collection was, and should always remain, a direct response to that silence.

August 19, 2020

Clinton P. Roberts

Clinton P. Roberts

HST580

Arizona State University

portfolio

English Rural

English Home & Family Life

English Biography

Oklahoma

Blanchard

intern

curate

public history

archive

silences

Rural Voices

08/19/2020

Katy Kole de Peralta

Reviewed and made public 08/28/2020

08/02/2022

08/19/2020