Posted by Melody on Wednesday, Sep 19, 2018
Sometimes we get a question at the Info Desk that makes us turn to the archives held by the State Historical Society of Iowa (SHSI). The SHSI's official web presence has information maintained by the State of Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs, their parent body. You can dig for the links on their website to find a way to search the SHSI's catalog of items, or you can stick this knowledge in your back pocket: the University of Iowa Libraries hosts the SHSI catalog, so you can go directly to their InfoHawk+ catalog to do your research.
The two SHSI research centers are in Des Moines and Iowa City. Being a local history searcher at ICPL, I generally limit my search to what is held in the SHSI Iowa City stacks. Find the "Refine my results" section and check "Iowa City Historical Library."
The limiters available are powerful. Here I can separate out the type of document I'm looking for so I can home in on what I'm really looking for.
I do find myself sometimes getting lost on the website maintained by the State, which is why I like knowing I can go directly to InfoHawk+. The State's research center Collections page does provide a nice overview of what kind of items the institution as a whole preserves, but I'm out of luck if I want to be able to tell someone they can just walk down the street to find what they are looking for.
Happy researching!
About the Author
I've been at the library for more than 10 years now, and I still find joy when choosing the best books for our readers. My current reading journey is taking me book by book through different genres. I'm challenging myself to find books that are enough outside my wheelhouse that I'd pass them by on first glance. The genre I'm looking forward to... more
I reserved this book based on a review I read in the New York Times. It promised to be a highly readable breakdown of the driving forces behind serious conflicts--how well-meaning people get into them and how they can get out. I am learning so much from this book. I may have picked it up while thinking of the politically charged times we live in, but it has shined the light on conflict-inducing traps I didn't even know had snared me. For people who want to be freed of these snares, this book is a must-read. -Melody