“Capturing the Living Past: An Oral History Primer,” by Barbara W. Sommer and Mary Kay Quinlan for the Nebraska Historical Society; a thorough primer in Q & A format, especially tailored for nonspecialists interested in interviewing on local and family history; focus is on planning and conducting an interview, less on curating oral history materials; available here Capturing_the_Living_Past_-_An_Oral_History_Primer. The eResources referenced in the document are available here.
“Digital Audio Field Recording Equipment Guide,” developed by the Vermont Folklife Center; excellent guide to various recording technologies, as well as specific models; available at https://www.vermontfolklifecenter.org/archive/res_audioequip.htm; website also includes guides to field recording in the digital age, digital editing of field audio, and preservation of multi-media materials.
“Eight Steps to Doing Oral History,” developed by Samual Proctor Oral History Program, University of Florida; a quick guide; at https://oral.history.ufl.edu/research/tutorials/.
“Interviewing Guidelines,” developed by UCLA’s Oral History Program; page also includes links to a sample legal agreement, family history sample outline, and a good bibliography; at https://oralhistory.library.ucla.edu/interviewGuidelines.html
“Introduction to Oral History “ and “Digital Oral History Workshop ,” developed by Baylor University’s Institute for Oral History; available at https://www.baylor.edu/oralhistory/index.php?id=23560. The “Digital Oral History Workshop” is an excellent guide to adapting digital tools to the oral history process.
“Oral History in the Digital Age,” developed by MATRIX, Michigan State University Digital Humanities Center in collaboration with numerous partners; the go-to place for the latest information on digital media as they relate to all phases of the oral history procc, including recording, curating, and disseminating oral history; at https://ohda.matrix.msu.edu/.
“Oral History Primer,” developed by the Regional History Project, University Library, University of California, Santa Cruz; an overview of the interview process from planning to followup; includes interviewing tips; at https://library.ucsc.edu/reg-hist/oral-history-primer.
“Oral History Techniques: How to Organize and Conduct Oral History Interviews,” developed by Indiana University’s Oral History Research Center
“Oral History on the Web: A Primer,” developed by the T. Harry Williams Center for Oral History at Louisiana State University; basic discussion “of simple principles by which oral histories can be transformed into effective Web presentations;” at https://www.lib.lsu.edu/services/oralhistory/
“A Quick Guide to Oral History,” developed by the Regional Oral History Office at the University of California at Berkeley; at https://bancroft.berkeley.edu/ROHO/resources/1minute.html
“The SOHP Practical Guide,” developed by the Southern Oral History Program at the University of North Carolina; website also includes sample interview forms and an extensive bibliography.
“Step by Step Guide to Oral History,” developed by historian and educator Judith Moyer; a thorough guide that includes both “how to” information about planning and conducting an interview, as well as discussions of ethical, historiographic, and interpretive issues in oral history; at https://www.dohistory.org/on_your_own/toolkit/oralHistory.html .
Prepared by Linda Shopes
Updated August, 2012
