Knute Berger at the Nordic Heritage Museum, AKCHO Annual Meeting, January 31, 2017. Photo by Teresa Anderson.

At the annual meeting of the Association of King County Heritage Organizations, in a keynote address he described as a “love-letter of a kind,” Crosscut columnist Knute Berger reminded AKCHO members — historical societies, preservation organizations, archives, libraries, and museums from around King County — how their work supports journalism.

In his address, Berger warned that growing economic pressures and technological change are straining both journalism and heritage organizations, and that we face these challenges at a time when our physical and social environments are also rapidly changing, when preserving and remembering our history is especially important.

Establishing facts

Berger described using local repositories to research several recent stories, including a series on racist place names in Washington State (see for example, “Racist Names to be Scrubbed from Washington Maps“).

The variety of sources Berger consults in his work speaks to the importance of wide and deep research in establishing facts and in understanding and interpreting history.

Detail of map showing Coon Creek, one of the racist place names discussed in Berger’s series. Snoqualmie National Forest Cedar Lake Road No. 222, 1938. Series 488, Department of Transportation Road Services Division Maps and plans: Virtual Map Vault. King County Archives.

Historical records as evidence

In discussing maps, Berger pointed out that even some original, historical records, in so far as they are products of a given culture, don’t necessarily describe reality.

Historical records can reflect cultural or other bias. They can also capture a record-keeper’s arbitrary decisions or mistakes. And, not insignificantly, they are limited by the technology employed to establish facts and to record them. Thus, piecing together multiple perspectives and cross-checking assertions from multiple sources, both primary and secondary, is critical to creating an accurate historical picture.

At the King County Archives, our primary role is not to interpret history, but to preserve and provide access to records that help establish and explain it. Our clients include teachers and students, business owners, homeowners, academics, attorneys, government employees, hobbyists, genealogists, engineers, policymakers, journalists, and others, from all walks of life.

It is our job, along with other heritage organizations, to record what was and what is, to preserve a sense of place, to document rights and obligations, and to invite newcomers to join in our region’s shared history.

Both Berger’s address and the AKCHO meeting served as a reminder that although we have different missions, institutions such as schools, news organizations, museums, libraries, and archives all share in common the desire to promote interest in and understanding of the past to inform the present.

Thanks to Knute Berger for permission to quote his keynote address here.

The King County Archives is delighted to be participating in a second archival screening night at the Northwest Film Forum, hosted by Moving Image Preservation of Puget Sound (MIPoPS). The event takes place on Friday, February 17 (doors open at 7pm, showtime is at 8pm) and promises to offer an interesting and entertaining mix, with contributions from the Sally Sykes Group, Scarecrow Video, the Seattle Art Museum, Seattle Public Schools, the Wing Luke Museum, the Seattle Municipal Archives, the University of Washington Libraries Special Collections, and the King County Archives.

The screening will feature videos that have been converted from analog formats to digital for preservation and access using equipment, software, and expertise provided by MIPoPS. The King County Archives is fortunate to be a MIPoPS partner, allowing us to conserve our at-risk archival videos.

Why digitize video?

Videotape — magnetic media like Betacam, VHS, and Umatic — in many cases is the original format of moving image recordings dating from the 1970s into the 1990s.  In other cases, videotaped copies are our only versions of original film. These materials are increasingly at risk, as magnetic tape deteriorates over time. Sadly, we have already discovered one significant tape in the King County Archives collection that has become unplayable.

King County’s Waste Away

At the February 17th screening, we will be contributing a shortened version of Waste Away (1966) a lighthearted and optimistic look at advances in solid waste management. The film captures a time when public awareness was just beginning to form around the problem of garbage in a consumer society.

Adam and Eve

Early waste management

Illegal dumping

Above: stills (Adam and Eve, early waste management, and illegal dumping) from Waste Away, 1966.

Below: animated gif created from stills (engineer designing “The Mole”).

The Mole

Waste Away highlights King County’s experimental mobile trash-compactor, affectionately known as “The Mole.” Sold at auction in the early 1970s, the Mole is rumored to have been purchased by George Lucas’s film company and to have served as the model and/or inspiration for the Star Wars Tatooine sandcrawlers.

Top: The Mole. Series 400, Department of Transportation, Road Services: Photograph and Moving Image Files, Box 57, #1316, ref ID 400.123.70. King County Archives. Bottom: Tatooine Sandcrawler from Star Wars (Image courtesy of Wookieepedia: The Star Wars Wiki).

Get your tickets!

Advance warning: the October 2016 Archival Screening Night at the Northwest Film Forum sold out.

We hope to see you there!

Event details