Welcome to Our History Project's Oral History section. First, let me say that History is not meant to be one word it is in fact two (2) His - Story and it just as well can be Her - Story. History and Herstory are both relevant to any time frame and on any continent. Also, it can differ slightly or radically from academically taught history.
You may be asking yourself why that is true. Well the short answer is: That you are recording a personal account and for that person living through an event it can be many things and realities. We as researchers strive to find those books, journals and diaries that give us those personal accounts. It helps put the pieces together and may just bring about a different study on the events talked about.
How do I record it and what length?
These days voice recorders are cheap and most phone have this option as well. You can purchase a good voice recorder for under $50 anywhere (Do not buy RCA). I recommend Olympus recorders but anything except RCA that records in .WMA or .MP3 is fine. Time: 30 to 40 minutes recommended not exceeding 1 hour in length (25 Minimum). You can download Audacity which is a free open source audio editing program and works on windows and apple systems.
All video needs to put on a DVD. Time: 30 to 40 minutes recommended not exceeding 1 hour in length (25 Minimum).
Find a quiet room to conduct the interviews you want them to be the main topic with little or no background noise.
What if my family lead very boring lives or I don't think it would be interesting?
When my mother passed away the first thing I wanted was to hear her voice. I had done countless practice interviews with her to test my equipment for my real interviews. It turned out I saved nothing. That taught me a lesson; a hard one; so I started recording the family. Now, for generations to come my children, my children's children and for countless generations after will be able to not only see a picture but also hear the person talk about something that was important to them, whatever it is….Now that is priceless.
One last thing on this - Audio or Video is fine but always include a photo (head shot).
Submissions of interviews:
For Veterans: The Library of Congress has a place for these and it need to follow certain guidelines for the submission to be accepted I have provided them here in .pdf form. You can download it from the Library of Congress and type in the file you download, resave it (for a copy for yourself), print it out and send it in.
We will also have a place for these so send us a copy as well by e-mail or snail mail.
For Non-Veterans: It will be a rare thing indeed if the Library of Congress took these, they do not want them. However, we do and so will some regional or specific repositories and digital libraries. We are working on this project now and as funding is available we will be implementing this program in a special section. We will retain all of them until it goes live and we can post them. Download our forms here. "Coming Soon"
War Time Veterans: it is going to depend on the Conflict and Action they were a part of, so tailor your questions to fit. Some research on your part may be necessary before the interview.
Non-Veterans and Non-War Veterans: For submissions I would pick a time or a group of times such as the depression, home front in WWII, the 50's, the 60's the 70's……. Try to talk about major events of the time and how it changed or impacted them on a personal basis.
For both of these, don't stop there! If they are a member of your family get it all. Burn it to a CD put it in a safe or Safety Deposit Box. Keep them forever, this is a part of your family and memories that will not be gotten after they are gone. Treasure them and take as long as you need. I have over 8 hours of some family members and as little as 30 minutes for some.
A great time to get these memories is at family gatherings such as Holidays. Everyone will enjoy listening and may just bring up questions as well. And, this is a time where background noise is fine and you can even document or say a person's name when they want to get in on the interview and ask a question too.
Sample questions
We have provided you with some thoughts to get you started. Remember, you will have to conduct the interview and it needs to follow a train of thought or time line. It is going to vary on the topic discussed. To find more sample questions:
