Mansfield Library Archives and Special Collections

After removing the residue, the volume is hand-sewn with new endpapers. The needle and thread are passed through groupings of pages (signature folds) and back out to the spine across linen sewing tapes. Then, the spine back is relined with Japanese tissue and starched linen.

Next, new book covers are made from binders board, custom-fitted to the text block and covered with book cloth. Then, the text block is attached to the new case by gluing the endsheet and sewing tapes to the board. The book is placed in a book press overnight to dry. Once it's dry, the book is ready for the shelves!

For books without water damage, the text block is placed in a finishing press and methyl cellulose is used to strip the old adhesive off the book’s spine. It usually takes several applications of methyl cellulose to remove all of the original spine backing.

Methyl cellulose is a white powder that is mixed with water to form a clear viscous solution or gel. It has an extremely wide range of uses and is used in book conservation to loosen and clean off old glue. The slimy, gooey appearance of methyl cellulose makes it popular for use in special effects for motion pictures and television to simulate vile slime.

This book never imagined its final “voyage” would be the Preservation Department. Although the cover was damaged beyond repair, the contents were salvageable.

This book arrived in Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library Preservation Dept. still wet. Our techs carefully removed the cover from the text block and then interleaved newsprint throughout the pages to serve as blotter paper. The text was then put into the Vacme Press (swipe through) to transfer the moisture to the newsprint.

It took 18 cycles of interleaving the book with fresh newsprint and placing it in the Vacme Press to complete the drying process for this volume.

What happened next? Check back tomorrow for the next post!

COVID 19 Update, April 27, 2020 Missoula City-County COVID-19 Update April 27, 2020

Preservation Week is April 26-May 2, and we’re highlighting book repairs by the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library Preservation Department. They’ve seen it all! Books damaged by beloved canines (see photo), books taken for river trips, books dropped in puddles, and books used as door stops, speed bumps, and coasters.*

Glimpse the exciting world of book conservation and preservation this week as we watch a water-damaged book transform into a working copy for the library. Stay tuned…

*Please do not do any of these things to library materials in your care.

Don’t forget...the Native News Project by University of Montana Journalism School students is available on ScholarWorks. Check out the link below to see all of the previous issues reporting on Montana's First Peoples.

https://scholarworks.umt.edu/nativenews_asc/

In honor of , we're celebrating with the Richard Hugo collection (Mss 488). Hugo, a renowned poet, taught at the University of Montana from the 1960s to 1980s. Mansfield Library Archives and Special Collections holds 15 of his handwritten poetry notebooks.

Link to Hugo collection guide: http://archiveswest.orbiscascade.org/ark:/80444/xv11289/op=fstyle.aspx?t=k&q=richard+hugo

Missoula history leaders document COVID-19 response A growing group of Missoula County historians and leaders has created an archive to collect responses to COVID-19 in the county for posterity.

Did you know that the first Kyiyo Pow Wow, held in 1969, was called Kyi-Yo Indian Days? The three-day event included a banquet, discussions, speeches, panels, an art exhibition, awards, the crowning of Miss Kyi-Yo, a parade down Higgins Ave. in Missoula, and a powwow.

Chris Roberts, who donated photographs of past Kyiyo powwows to the archives, was one of the founding members of Kyiyo, along with Patrick Weasel Head, Lorraine Edmo, Rodney Miller, Kenneth Ryan, Lloyd C**n, Harold Gray, and Rex Svoboda. Thanks, Chris!

Event program from 1974 Kyiyo powwow, University of Montana Publications (UPUBs); Image of Chris Roberts in Fancy Dance regalia, 1974 Kyiyo powwow, Mss 914, photo 003.

Fantastic news! Every issue of the School of Journalism’s Native News Project (1992-2019) is now available online and keyword-searchable in ScholarWorks (https://scholarworks.umt.edu/nativenews/).

“The School of Journalism began the Native News Project after observing that issues of concern to the state's Native Americans were not being covered in-depth by the news media. We wanted to look closely at the history, culture and social issues that shape the lives of Montana's 12 Indian tribes and make certain their voices and experiences were represented,” says Professor Emeritus Carol Van Valkenburg, who started the project.

The 2018 issue "In Their Hands" explores the evolution and current state of tribal self-governance on each of the reservations.

In the mid-1800s, when beads were acquired through trade, the style for women’s traditional dance outfit was to bead the entire top of the dress. The design of each dress had symbolic meaning to the individual owner. Most traditional dancers wear or carry a shawl and some carry a hawk or eagle feather fan, or a single feather. This may depend on whether the dance is social or a competition.

The Women’s Traditional Dance basically consists of remaining stationary and bending the knees with a slight up and down movement of the body. At the same time, the feet shift subtly and women turn slightly. At certain points in the song, women may hear words that have meaning to them. They may signal their pride and acknowledge the words by raising their fans.

Freddie Hunter competing in the Women's Traditional Dance at the 2007 Kyiyo Powwow, Mss 914, photo 024; Joey Jayne at the 2009 Kyiyo Powwow, Mss 914, photo 030; text from Montana's Indian Education for All "Your Guide to Understanding and Enjoying Powwows," 2019

UM's own Michelle Guzman, Director of American Indian Student Services and master beader, at the 2007 Kyiyo Powwow. Banjo Cat was so lucky to get a photo with her.

Mss 914, photo 020.