Developing local narratives for objects in national collections: Lessons learned from the “Number Please? Working with the Enfield Exchange” project.
Journal article
Authors | Geoghegan, Hilary, McIlvenna, Kathleen and van der Vaart, Merel |
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Abstract | Museums of science, technology, and engineering are developing new ways of interpreting and displaying their collections. Increasingly objects are being placed within narratives of everyday use; the human side of technology. The focus of this article is a section of one of the last UK manual telephone switchboards, which was acquired by the Science Museum, London, following its decommissioning in 1960. This artifact offers a unique insight into a communication technology that relied extensively on female telephonists, a distinct way of understanding gender roles in the twentieth century. The authors explore strategies for developing local narratives for objects from national collections and reflect on lessons learned from a cross-institutional collaboration. This article highlights: the value of local historians, community events and oral histories to developing local narratives; how these activities informed understandings of the telephone switchboard; work life in the communications industry; the relationship between women and technology; and practical strategies that can enhance collections and museum practice through collaboration. |
Keywords | Museums; Collaboration; Local narratives; National collections; Museum collections; Oral history; Public history |
Year | 2017 |
Journal | Curator: The Museum Journal |
Publisher | Wiley |
ISSN | 00113069 |
Digital Object Identifier (DOI) | https://doi.org/10.1111/cura.12201 |
Web address (URL) | http://hdl.handle.net/10545/622352 |
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ | |
hdl:10545/622352 | |
Publication dates | 19 Jun 2017 |
Publication process dates | |
Deposited | 16 Mar 2018, 11:55 |
Rights | Archived with thanks to Curator: The Museum Journal |
Contributors | Institute of Historical Research |
File | |
File | File Access Level Open |
File | File Access Level Open |
https://repository.derby.ac.uk/item/924xz/developing-local-narratives-for-objects-in-national-collections-lessons-learned-from-the-number-please-working-with-the-enfield-exchange-project
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