About the project

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$50,000 Grant from the Texas State Library & Archives Commission

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$50,000 Grant from the Texas State Library & Archives Commission

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In January 2024, the Digital PV Panther Project (DPPP) worked with the John B. Coleman Library and the Waller County Historical Commission (WCHC) to submit a $50,000 TexTreasures grant to the Texas State Library & Archives Commission (TSLAC).

This project is made possible by a grant from the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services to the State Library and Archives Commission (Grant# TXT-25009 – 2024 – Preventing the Erasure of Black History in Texas)

In 2021, DPPP received a $25,000 TexTreasures award from TSLAC to hire two archival consultants and create processing plans for over 30 manuscript collections in the archives. The 2024 TexTreasures grant will fund:

  1. the hiring of 4 students majoring in Social Sciences for one year
  2. the purchase of a 32 Terabyte server for digital storage
  3. the purchase of archival supplies to process and digitize several manuscript collections in the archives.

The 2024 TexTreasures grant can be extended for three years and $150,000 total.

It’s the 6th external grant awarded to the DPPP since 2021.

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Grant Abstract

To build upon the success of a previous TexTreasures grant, the Digital PV Panther Project (DPPP) will collaborate with the John B. Coleman Library and Waller County Historical Commission to hire four undergraduates at PVAMU to finish processing, digitizing, and creating finding aids for the Cooperative Extension & Home Demonstration Collection. The team will submit the finding aids to TARO and publish digital finding aids on our websites. The team will also digitize the remaining manuscript collections of former PVAMU professors and administrators, which were processed for a previous 2021-22 TexTreasures grant. Moreover, the team will procure archival supplies, process, and create finding aids for the PV Educational Conference Collection, the TAMU System Board of Regents Collection, and the Woolfolk Collection—all of which have processing plans created during previous NEH grant projects.

The 2021 TexTreasures grant proved transformational at PVAMU. It allowed the DPPP to process, rehouse, and create findings aids for more than 30 collections of former professors and administrators at PVAMU. Until that time, the PVAMU archives had no processed collections or finding aids.

Today, the archives has processed and created finding aids for almost 100 collections as well as submitted the original 30+ collections from the TexTreasures grant to Texas Archival Resources Online (TARO). DPPP digitized 18 of the collections and created interactive finding aids with hyperlinks on the project website, which allow researchers to examine the manuscript collections from the comfort of their homes.

For example, the John Henley Williams Collection documents his activities as a Cooperative Extension agent in Texas from 1932 to 1947. While it contains mostly correspondence with other agents, the collection also features certificates, annual reports, and meeting minutes from the U.S.  War and Food Administration.

Since 2021, DPPP has worked tirelessly to make archival collections available to researchers at PVAMU. 

Processed Collections

90+

Digitized Collections

18

Digitized Photographs

10,000+

thoughtful black man writing in notebook sitting at table in outdoor cafeteria
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Students now, Alumni forever!

Students now, Alumni forever!

“Years have passed, yet the diploma hangs perfectly centered behind my chair and the graduation ring sits proudly atop my finger…constant reminders of the formative years I spent as an undergraduate.”

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“For the record, I did not attend Prairie View A&M University, but I did attend an HBCU that provided me with a hefty dose of the Black experience and, more importantly, a better understanding of the giving-back concept. Ordinarily, one would consider these lessons to be indicative of an HBCU education, but my epiphany occurred during a freshman-week session called ‘students now, alumni forever.’

Alumni, as defined by Webster, are graduates, former students, or old pupils. My college said, “Anyone can matriculate through college, earn a degree, and become a graduate but our alumni do that and so much more. They are individuals who completely embrace the uniqueness and importance of an HBCU education by beginning their support now and continuing it forever. Which kind do you want to be?”

By Nelson Bowman, alumnus of Morehouse College

Andre Evans - 2007

Andre Evans republished this article in a 2007 issue of the student newspaper, the Prairie View Panther, and he explained, “I am still an undergraduate and I cannot fully explain to you the invigorating experience received from giving back to your alma mater, so I gave you a testimony from someone who could. True, I am attempting to foster within the students an altruistic spirit, but I would never limit that to monetary donations. When you reach the point of self-actualization, you will realize that you have so much to offer other than money. Your support, love, and even presence can be a contribution.”

Evans closed by encouraging students to join the Pre-Alumni Association, but I will encourage students who are truly interested in giving back to the university to start by submitting an article, short story, or poem for consideration to be published on our website.

We have lost so much in the absence of the student newspaper, and the Digital PV Panther Project wants to amplify the voices and creative spirit of students at the oldest public HBCU in Texas. Our mission is to eliminate the silences and prevent the erasure of history at PVAMU, and we have made great strides when it comes to historic preservation in the archives. The students who work on the project have devoted their time and attention to processing and digitizing some of the most important documents that remain housed at this institution, and I am so proud of their monumental achievements since we hired the first group of eleven undergraduates in the summer of 2022. We have received external support from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Texas State Library & Archives Commission, and the Summerlee Foundation, and we have received internal financial support from Dr. Krishnamoorthi through the RISE program and Dr. Musa Olaka, the esteemed director of John B. Coleman Library. My heart is truly full.

But the truth is that we simply cannot fulfill our mission without the support and contributions of the students. The students are the bone, the sinew, the very life’s blood of this great campus. So come see us in Room 111 of the library–past Dunkin Donuts on the right–or send us an email at [email protected]. 

Help us Preserve the Now!

Richard Jackson, successful melon demonstrator of Sunny Side Community, Waller County 1937
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Summer RISE with the Digital PV Panther Project

Summer RISE with the Digital PV Panther Project

By Evelyn Kay Todd

Above: Richard Jackson standing in his melon field in the Sunny Side community, Waller County, 1937 [Courtesy of the Cooperative Extension & Home Demonstration Collection, the Special Collections & Archives Department, John B. Coleman Library, Prairie View A&M University]

 

In June, the PVAMU Division of Research & Innovation provided me funding through the RISE program, and Assistant Professor of History DeWayne Moore gave me the opportunity to join the Digital PV Panther Project (DPPP) team! I had found out about the project through social media, when I began to pay attention to their Twitter posts. When I read the blog post of Malachi McMahon about the 1971 student uprising at PVAMU, I sent it to my family in shock. I learned that my mother and grandparents lived in Prairie View at that time while my grandfather attended the university. I had always known that my family had history with PVAMU, as I am a 3rd Generation PVAMU Alumnus, but I did not know how deep it ran. (I will tell you more about that in a different post.) Excited about the DPPP, I reached out to the team to share some of my family history, and I asked about how I might contribute to the project. Soon after, I was invited to join the DPPP team as a Graduate Research Assistant through the RISE Program.

What I Accomplished this Summer

I started to work in June 2023. For the first month, I focused on scanning documents, and I digitized and processed 154 archival folders from four counties using a CZUR Document Scanner from the Cooperative Extension & Home Demonstration Collection. Following the archival processing system implemented by DPPP team prior to my arrival, I picked up where the students before me left off. Each one of the grey archival document boxes contains numerous acid-free folders filled with documents, maps, reports, and correspondence from Cooperative Extension agents. Using the metadata written on each  folder, I created names for each of the digitized documents in the CZUR Scanner system, and then, I would determine the appropriate settings to scan the documents. At the end of the day, once I had scanned all the documents in the folders, I copied them from the hard drive to the cloud in Microsoft Teams. The shared drive provides the team access to the digitized documents.

Texas Counties in the CE&HD Collection

Documents digitized and processed:

1. Matagorda County – Box 1, Box 2 (55 folders total)

2. Montgomery County – Box 1, Box 2 (63 folders total)

3. Nacogdoches County – Box 1 (6 folders total)

4. San Jacinto County – Box 1 (30 folders total)

4-H Club Dress Revue Models in 1959 Bowie County [Courtesy of the Cooperative Extension & Home Demonstration Collection, the Special Collections & Archives Department, John B. Coleman Library, Prairie View A&M University]
4-H Club Dress Revue Models in 1959 Bowie County [Courtesy of the Cooperative Extension & Home Demonstration Collection, the Special Collections & Archives Department, John B. Coleman Library, Prairie View A&M University]

Proudly, I learned new skills on the DPPP. I had no idea that archival processing required specific tools for removing old paperclips and staples from documents, but it proved crucial to avoid tearing the often brittle old documents dating back the 1920s. I also discovered a host of misplaced documents, which had belonged in other boxes. As a student who appreciates an efficient research process, I made sure to bring the errors to the attention of Dr. Moore, and I kept an eye out for anything that might seem out of place.

About halfway through the summer, Dr. Moore decided to switch it up a bit, and I got to change my focus from document scanning to photographs. In the Fall semester, we plan to curate digital touchscreen exhibitions and display them on our new 86″ and 66″ touchscreen displays. Thus, I started using the Epson 12000XL flatbed scanner to scan all the maps, photographs, and newspaper articles from various counties in the CE&HD Collection. As of August 3, I have digitized almost 300 items from thirteen different counties. In addition, I created a spreadsheet in Microsoft Excel and recorded the metadata about each item–name, location, date, and other information. The CZUR Document scanner looks very different than the Epson 12000XL, but each of them requires a similar settings process. The Epson, however, allows me to preview my scans and create boxes around each item on the scanner bed. I have scanned, for example, up to eight photographs at once using the Epson. It’s a efficient feature, because it allows me to scan the photographs while I enter the metadata in the spreadsheet. At the end of each day, once again, I uploaded the digital images to the cloud in Microsoft Teams. Not only does this provide the team access the images, but it also provides redundant storage in case the computer hard drive fails.

Digitized Images from 1937-1963

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Herman Arthur, of the Clear Creek Community, working on his pecan trees for summer budding, 1937 [Courtesy of the Cooperative Extension & Home Demonstration Collection, the Special Collections & Archives Department, John B. Coleman Library, Prairie View A&M University]
Mrs. Mattie Fuller shares cake baking tips
Mrs. Mattie Fuller shares cake baking tips, 1948 [Courtesy of the Cooperative Extension & Home Demonstration Collection, the Special Collections & Archives Department, John B. Coleman Library, Prairie View A&M University]
Richard Jackson, successful melon demonstrator of Sunny Side Community, Waller County 1937
Richard Jackson was a successful melon demonstrator from the Sunny Side Community in Waller County, 1937 [Courtesy of the Cooperative Extension & Home Demonstration Collection, the Special Collections & Archives Department, John B. Coleman Library, Prairie View A&M University]
4-H Club Dress Revue Models, Bowie County 1959
The women in a 4-H Club Dress Revue in Bowie County, 1959 [Courtesy of the Cooperative Extension & Home Demonstration Collection, the Special Collections & Archives Department, John B. Coleman Library, Prairie View A&M University]
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A demonstration in setting out pine seedlings, January 18,1947 [Courtesy of the Cooperative Extension & Home Demonstration Collection, the Special Collections & Archives Department, John B. Coleman Library, Prairie View A&M University]
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A pruning demonstration being conducted in Colony community on farm of Volnar Derry, in a demonstration orchard, 1937 [Courtesy of the Cooperative Extension & Home Demonstration Collection, the Special Collections & Archives Department, John B. Coleman Library, Prairie View A&M University]
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Gregg County Home Demonstration Bake Show where seventy-five Cakes were exhibited, 1948 [Courtesy of the Cooperative Extension & Home Demonstration Collection, the Special Collections & Archives Department, John B. Coleman Library, Prairie View A&M University]
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Winning Ladies of the first Bread Show for the Negro Home Demonstration Clubs in Guadalupe County, 1947 [Courtesy of the Cooperative Extension & Home Demonstration Collection, the Special Collections & Archives Department, John B. Coleman Library, Prairie View A&M University]
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Mrs. Laila Watson is being given a demonstration on making a candlewick spread by her Home Agent, 1949 [Courtesy of the Cooperative Extension & Home Demonstration Collection, the Special Collections & Archives Department, John B. Coleman Library, Prairie View A&M University]
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Handdrawn Map of Jasper County, 1959 [Courtesy of the Cooperative Extension & Home Demonstration Collection, the Special Collections & Archives Department, John B. Coleman Library, Prairie View A&M University]
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Alpha Boys vaccinate hogs, Dallas County, 1942 [Courtesy of the Cooperative Extension & Home Demonstration Collection, the Special Collections & Archives Department, John B. Coleman Library, Prairie View A&M University]

As the summer comes to an end, I stopped scanning photographs long enough to write this blog post. With funding from the RISE program, Dr. Moore and I moved forward historic preservation in the library. We intend to share the digitized documents, photographs, and maps on the DPPP website as well as the library’s Digital Commons, and I look forward to sharing more updates about our work on the DPPP. Our efforts to digitally preserve the Cooperative Extension & Home Demonstration Collection is vitally important to the university. The PVAMU archives contain other rich manuscript collections that detail the institutional history of PVAMU, and I look forward to building upon our success this summer!

Visit the Office of Research & Innovation at PVAMU to find out more on the RISE Grant Program

Visit Research at PVAMU to find out more on the RISE Grant Program

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Promotional Article on PVAMU website

Substantial NEH grant helping to eliminate silences, erasures surrounding history of PVAMU
The Special Collections & Archives Department at Prairie View A&M University has received a $450,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. The funds helped establish the Digital PV Panther Project, which aims to eliminate the silences and erasures surrounding the history of PVAMU. The project is taking deliberate and conscious steps towards what Princeton University digital archivist Jarrett Drake calls “a radically inclusive historical record.” By preserving, processing and promoting research in the archives, the project will begin to eliminate the silences and erasures surrounding the history of PVAMU.
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Caleb Brookins working on his computer
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Caleb Brookins: A Rewarding Experience

Caleb Brookins working on the Digital PV Panther Project - Photo © T. DeWayne Moore 2022
Caleb Brookins working on the Digital PV Panther Project – Photo © T. DeWayne Moore 2022

Lucrative Work

When I first applied for the position of archival assistant on the Digital PV Panther Project, my goal was to generate an income stream while attending college. I had some available time in my schedule during the fall semester of 2022, and I wanted to fill it in a constructive manner. Prairie View A&M University sits in rural Waller County, Texas, and students do not have a multitude of work opportunities. Thus, I visited the website for student jobs, and I was excited about seeing a job that paid more than any other on campus.

Rewarding Experience

Little did I know the monumental impact the experience would have on my mindset moving forward. Indeed, I will always cherish my experience working on the Digital PV Panther Project.

Caleb Brookins - Photo © T. DeWayne Moore 2022
Caleb Brookins – Photo © T. DeWayne Moore 2022
(L to R) Caleb Brookins, Hannah Harden, Lindsay Boknight, and Noah Jackson - Photo © T. DeWayne Moore 2022
(L to R) Caleb Brookins, Hannah Harden, Lindsay Boknight, and Noah Jackson – Photo © T. DeWayne Moore 2022

Learning Experience

So many students do not know about the rich history of Prairie View A&M University, and I was certainly one of them when I started working on the Digital PV Panther Project in August 2022. Over the course of six months working in the archives, I not only learned about the history of slavery at Alta Vista, the plantation once owned by Jared Ellison Kirby, but I had the opportunity to process and digitize manuscript collections that former professors and administrators had donated to the university.

Serious Impact 

It is amazing that I had the opportunity to preserve important documents in the university archives. Indeed, the importance of the work being done through the Digital PV Panther Project is the preservation of our history. There are countless boxes full of photos, documents, and audiotapes that convey stories about Prairie View. The digitization of this media will not only allow scholars and students to gain a better understanding of our history, but it will also enhance access to long-unexamined resources. This makes my contributions to the project stand the test of time.

Caleb Brookins - Photo © T. DeWayne Moore 2022
Caleb Brookins – Photo © T. DeWayne Moore 2022

Ground Penetrating Radar

Caleb also helped document and map Prairie View Memorial Gardens, the cemetery to the north of campus that contains the graves of former PVAMU professors and administrators.

View the Cemetery Map

Forward Movement

Even though I am a Psychology major, this public history project captured my sincere interest, which demonstrates the impact that historic preservation at PVAMU can have on other students in the future. Though I must take advantage of new opportunities, I am proud to have spent the fall 2022 semester preventing the erasure of our history, and I am eternally grateful and honored to have had the opportunity.

Read Caleb's Previous Blog on the PV19
(L to R) Noah Jackson, Zynitra Durham, Caleb Brookins, and Kalayah Jammer during a photoshoot - Photo © T. DeWayne Moore 2022
(L to R) Noah Jackson, Zynitra Durham, Caleb Brookins, and Kalayah Jammer during a photoshoot – Photo © T. DeWayne Moore 2022
DPPP Social Media
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Progress to Date

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The Digital PV

Panther Project

 

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Accomplishments

We still have other collections to process and digitize, more skills to learn, and more research to publish, but the Digital PV Panther Project has established a strong foundation for the future of public history at PVAMU. This is a short list of our accomplishments in digital exhibition format for your viewing pleasure!

 

Archival Boxes

Archival Processing

We have rehoused over 60 linear feet of archival media in the Cooperative Extension & Home Demonstration Collection, which had been stored in old, deteriorating boxes since the late 2000s. We have also rehoused and processed the manuscript collections of former 31 former PVAMU professors and administrators. Click HERE to view the finding aids.

View the Finding Aids
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Social Media – Community Engagement

We have established a social media presence on Twitter, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and LinkedIn. We have gained almost 200 followers on Twitter, and some of our Tweets have received over 100 likes and 20 shares. We have created and published over 20 videos on TikTok, some of which have received in upwards of 1,000 views. Moreover, we have curated 148 posts on Instagram and organically acquired 300 followers!

DPPP Social Media

Logo Design

The archival assistants working on the Digital PV Panther Project have also designed an official logo for the project.

The DPPP logo

December 12, 2022

 

31 Finding Aids Created

We processed, rehoused, and created finding aids for the manuscript collections of 31 former PVAMU professors and administrators.

Audio Digitization & Transcription

Audio Digitization & Transcription

We digitized 211 analog audio tapes of historic lectures and events at PVAMU, and we have also transcribed 70 of the digital recordings as of Dec 10, 2022.

December 10, 2022

 

December 6, 2022

 

Digital Exhibition Software

Digital Exhibition Software

We also purchased a subscription to Pass It Down software to create amazing digital storytelling experiences, engage visitors, and inspire research

86" & 66" Touchscreen Displays

86" & 66" Touchscreen Displays

We purchased a Newline 860IP 86″ 4K Ultra-HD LED (Capacitive Touch) display & two Newline 650IP 65″ 4K Ultra-HD LED (Capacitive Touch) displays to allow stakeholders to view digital archival media in John B. Coleman Library

December 1, 2022

 

November 19, 2022

 

i2S CopiBook OS A2 Book Scanner

i2S CopiBook OS A2 Book Scanner

We acquired a $35,000 i2S CopiBook OS A2 Book Scanner to digitize manuscript collections.

Epson 12000XL

Epson 12000XL

We acquired two Epson 12000XL flatbed scanners with backlights

October 1, 2022

 

October 1, 2022

 

Epson V850s

Epson V850s

We acquired two Epson V850 flatbed scanners with backlights

CZUR Book Scanner

CZUR Book Scanner

We acquired a CZUR Book Scanner to digitize manuscript collections

September 26, 2022

 

July 2022

 

Project Blog

Project Blog

In the summer of 2022, we launched the project blog to update stakeholders on our progress!

Website Launched

Website Launched

We built a state-of-the-art website using Wordpress 

June 2022

 

Spring 2022

 

The student workers on the Digital PV Panther Project

Archival Assistants

In the spring of 2022, we hired 12 undergraduates at PVAMU to work as archival assistants on the Digital PV Panther Project

Contact

[email protected]
936-261-3512
John B. Coleman Library, Room 111, Prairie View, Texas 77446
The Negro 4-H Club girls who received the State Fair of Texas Honor Awards at the Dallas Fair, October 13, 1947, are (reading from left to right) Willie Mae McDaniel, Jefferson County; Maxine Harris, Caldwell County; and Gladys Harrison, Smith County.; 7X9
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A Student’s Perspective inside the DPPP

A Student's Perspective From Inside the DPPP

DAsia 2

My name is D'Asia Johnson

I have worked on the Digital PV Panther Project for about two months as an archival assistant, and I have embraced the role of historic preservationist at my HBCU. Whether curating social media posts, taking inventory of the archives, processing manuscript collections, or digitizing photographs, my goal is to encourage research in the rich historical collections in the archives at PVAMU.

I spent a lot of time taking inventory on the manuscript collections of former PVAMU professors and administrators who worked in the Cooperative Extension Service. 

PF58B Demonstration in Agricultural
The Negro 4-H Club girls who received the State Fair of Texas Honor Awards at the Dallas Fair, October 13, 1947, are (reading from left to right) Willie Mae McDaniel, Jefferson County; Maxine Harris, Caldwell County; and Gladys Harrison, Smith County.; 7X9

The inventory sheets for most of the Cooperative Extension & Home Demonstration Collection were outdated, having been completed originally by students in the early 2000s. Thus, I spent a lot of time revising inventory sheets in Microsoft Excel. In each instance, we checked the titles of each folder and made sure it was accounted for in each box. After making sure the folders were placed in the correct location and listed correctly, we went back through the boxes and noted the presence special media–maps, photographs, diagrams, etc. We made sure to check the accuracy of our work, because we had to have all the media in order prior to processing the collection.

I also compiled lists of source material in the Digital Commons, and I wrote summaries of each source in preparation for writing biographies of former professors for finding aids.wrote a biography on one of the many professors that attended this school. While I did not have much experience writing memoirs, I was assigned to write one on a professor who made a remarkable impact on Prairie View A&M, specifically Professor Henry Seward Estelle. He had an incredible effect on the Agricultural department from the early to mid-1900s. In addition, he partook in much more positions and events that occurred at Prairie View. If you want more information on Prof. Estelle, you can find his biography here Henry Seward Estelle – The Digital PV Panther Project.

I also assist in maintaining our social media pages. Being a part of our social media team, I help my coworkers develop ideas for posts. You can find me on a few of our Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok posts. In addition, we have made many posts that depict the rich history of PVAMU using photographs, blog posts, blueprints, and maps.

Headshot of Henry Seward Estelle
@digitalpvpantherproject Massive! The manuscript collections in the PVAMU Archives are massive in their scope and breadth! The Cooperative Extension & Home Demonstration Collection contains more than 100 linear feet of photographs, maps, and documents that date back more than 100 years and cover over 45 counties in Texas! #dppp #digitalpvpantherproject #hbcu #pvamuhistory ##pvamu##hbcuhistory##digitalcommons##archives##media##campus##digital ♬ Mission Impossible Theme (Movie Trailer Mix) – Dominik Hauser
PF73 Wildlife Conservation Camp, Prairie View Tx

 

I have also contributed to meetings with out team leaders, Dr. Moore, Ms. Earles, Lindsay Boknight, and Noah Jackson. We discuss our progress, our strategies, our upcoming projects, and our plans for the future. Indeed, I am amazed at the way that Dr. Moore incorporates our ideas into the project. The Digital PV Panther Project does not have the usual sort of top-down administrative style. Rather, Dr. Moore relies heavily on the input from myself and the other archival assistants to light the way. Whether it’s the method of taking inventory or processing collections, Dr. Moore always listens to our ideas about the project, and he allows the team leaders to manage our workflow. 

Thus far, my work on the Digital PV Panther Project has been eye-opening. To have the opportunity to work with such remarkable people and partake in such a significant project is astounding, to say the least. I hope to be able to continue to work on this project and share the incredible history of Prairie View with my peers, university staff and faculty, and with those across the nation. There are so many collections in the archives to discover and share with the public, and I am very appreciative of having the opportunity ro work on the Digital PV Panther Project.

The history of our HBCU should not be forgotten.

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Digital Preservation at PVAMU

Digital Preservation at PVAMU

By Kasedi Eason

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Identifying Texas Freedom Colonies

My name is Kasedi Eason, and I started working as an archival assistant on the Digital PV Panther Project in late August 2022. I document my work on the project daily, and it allows me to share with the public my experience in the archives. On August 31st, for example, I started to examine the archival media in the Cooperative Extension & Home Demonstration Collection, specifically he photographs taken by Cooperative Extension agents to demonstrate their work in the rural African American communities in Texas. The county agents worked very hard to improve the quality of life in rural communities through scientific farming and homemaking. Considering that so many of these communities no longer exist, and that the number of Black landowners significantly declined in the 1950s, this collection is especially significant because it documents the Black experience in Texas Freedom Colonies.

A future aspect of the Digital PV Panther Project will be adding data to the WebAtlas of the Texas Freedom Colonies Project–an educational and social justice initiative dedicated to supporting the preservation of Black settlement landscapes, heritage, and grassroots preservation practices through research.

 

Courtesy of the Special Collections & Archives Department (SCAD), John B. Coleman Library, PVAMU

1940s Map of Texas Freedom Colonies in Grimes County

Courtesy of the Special Collections & Archives Department (SCAD), John B. Coleman Library, PVAMU
Courtesy of the Special Collections & Archives Department (SCAD), John B. Coleman Library, PVAMU

One family loading their luggage into a Cooperative Extension Service Vehicle

Courtesy of the Special Collections & Archives Department (SCAD), John B. Coleman Library, PVAMU

Meticulous data entry

The CE&HD Collection contains documents, maps, and photographs that date back to the 1920s, and the county agents wrote about all their activities–from growing crops, to raising farm animals, to constructing houses. The agents also maintained meticulous records that detailed how much money they spent on each project. 

100 years of records

I found it very interesting how the cursive handwriting was readable, and my work on the Digital PV Panther Project has instilled a better appreciation for the manuscripts in the archives. Indeed, I am grateful that these collections were preserved and not thrown away, and I look forward to making this collection available to researchers. Some of the records are over one hundred years old!

Courtesy of the Special Collections & Archives Department (SCAD), John B. Coleman Library, PVAMU

Children at Morgan School (Guadalupe County) exercising in 1933 exercises, with agent supervising

Courtesy of the Special Collections & Archives Department (SCAD), John B. Coleman Library, PVAMU
@digitalpvpantherproject Massive! The manuscript collections in the PVAMU Archives are massive in their scope and breadth! The Cooperative Extension & Home Demonstration Collection contains more than 100 linear feet of photographs, maps, and documents that date back more than 100 years and cover over 45 counties in Texas! #dppp #digitalpvpantherproject #hbcu #pvamuhistory ##pvamu##hbcuhistory##digitalcommons##archives##media##campus##digital ♬ Mission Impossible Theme (Movie Trailer Mix) – Dominik Hauser
I am also proud to work on the social media team for the Digital PV Panther Project. I have created multiple TikTok videos showcasing my work as an archival assistant, and I am glad to put my skillset to work promoting the archival collections at PVAMU. For example, the TikTok video to the left demonstrates the vast amount of archival media in the CE&HD Collection. 

This project also gave the opportunity to work with some amazing scholars of African American History, specifically anthropologist Myeshia Babers–a professor of Africana Studies at Texas A&M University, who conducted interviews with several members of the team. Dr. Babers agreed to conduct interviews with archival assistants shortly after the project began, and she plans to edit the interviews for future publication online. In fact, we hope to expand the scope of our social media output by creating a Youtube channel, and we plan to publish the interviews with Dr. Babers to get us started. During my interview on September 2, I explained about my work thus far on the project, and I prognosticated about what I expect to get out of this job. It should be interesting to compare my initial interview with the interview we plan to conduct at the end of the project.

The following week, Dr. Moore organized a team meeting with University Archivist Ms. Phyllis Earles, who invited Dr. Musa Olaka, the library director, and Karl Henson, the assistant library director, to speak to us. Dr. Olaka told us about the benefits and opportunities we had working on this project, and he explained that Dr. Moore had written over $700,000 in grants to fund this project and hire students to do the work of historic preservation at PVAMU. None of our archival collections are processed, and the only real finding aids that we have are the ones that Dr. Moore wrote a grant to produce last year. Dr. Olaka told us that other students who worked for Ms. Earles and Dr. Moore had gone on to stellar careers, and his words have certainly inspired us to work harder and achieve the goals of the Digital PV Panther Project. 

At the meeting, we also talked about our progress on the project, and Dr. Moore compiled a project guidebook, which contains rules, guidelines, and instructions for various aspects of the project–from social media curation, to blogging, and the addition of media to Wordpress. One of my fellow archival assistants, Malachi McMahon, also took a moment to stress the significance of the project. His research has provided some of the most insightful and engaging blog posts to date, and it shows in his drive and determination to make positive changes in the world.

On September 27, I created a Tiktok video about the Abner Davis Memorial, which is the focus of Malachi’s best blog post to date (Click HERE to read it). The memorial is located on campus in front of the George Ruble Woolfolk Building. Abner Davis was a member of the varsity football team in 1927, and he broke his neck while trying to make a tackle against Texas College on Thanksgiving Day. He passed away due to the severity of the injuries. Since he was recognized as a great example of student success at PVAMU, his classmates and teammates created several different memorials over the years to their fallen hero.
@digitalpvpantherproject Check out the Abner Davis Statue located in front of the G.R. Woolfolk Social & Political Science Building on campus! 💜💛 #dppp #pvamu #hbcu #pvamuhistory #hbcuculture #history ♬ original sound – DIGITALPVPANTHERPROJECT

In the past couple of weeks, my work has focused on creating inventories spreadsheets for the numerous boxes in the CE&HD Collection, and I have also helped edit the finding aids of 31 former professors and administrators. We hope to complete the finding aids before October 31st. I have also developed a list of ideas for upcoming social media posts and TikTok videos.

Though I have only been an archival assistant for two months, I have gained a sincere appreciation for historic preservation during that time, and I have developed a much clearer understanding of the importance of the Digital PV Panther Project.

We plan to prevent the erasure of African American History by all means available to us, and I could not be more excited about the future!

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