Oral History Interviews

The length of your Oral History Interviews will vary according to the objectives of your event and your technical & storage capacity. If the oral history is tied to a particular object, the majority of the relevant details can be covered in an interview no longer than 5-10 minutes.

NOTE: Your audio recording equipment will likely vary depending on the size and scope of your event.

  1. If the contributor has multiple items, begin with the lowest ID number and move sequentially for each interview.
  2. Check the contributor’s sticker for their permissions(ANON, NA, etc.); reassure them that you will respect their selection.
    • If no audio (NA): Audio will be used only for transcription purposes. Transcribe and delete the audio.
    • If anonymous (ANON): De-identify the interview before posting it, and the “contributor” information on the website will say “Anonymous Contributor”
    • If personal use (PRIV): Do NOT use the interview on the community archive website. Send the contributor the recording along with the digitized object for their personal archives.

NOTE: Your audio recording equipment will likely vary depending on the size and scope of your event. Here, we have used a Sony PX series recording device as an example.

  1. Power on your recording device using the button on the side
    • To record, press the REC/PAUSE button, marked with a red circle. Make sure the device has starting recording before beginning the interview. You should see a red light and the recorder timer counting upwards.

    • Position the recording device so that it is between the interviewer and the contributor. Make sure that the microphone is facing both the interviewer and the contributor.

  2. To begin the interview, the interviewer should state their name and the contributor’s Object ID. For example:
    • “My name is _____ and I am interviewing the community member who contributed (Object ID) as part of (Event Name).”
  3. If the contributor is basing their oral history on an artifact, ask the following questions, but be aware of the length of the interview:
    • What is the name of your object?
    • When and where did you acquire it? (What year, city, etc.)
    • What is the date of the item’s creation?
    • How would you physically describe your object?
    • What is the object’s significance?
    • When you see this object, what kind of memories does it recall?
    • Is there anything I didn’t ask you about this object that you would like to talk about?
  4. If the contributor is basing their oral history on a photo or other image which conveys the topic they would like to discuss, ask the following questions:
    • Which memory would you like to share with us today?
    • Why is this memory significant to you?
    • How does this memory relate to your identity?
    • Is there anything I didn’t ask that you would like to talk about?
  5. Once finished, press “Stop” to end the recording.
  6. Power off the recorder and hand it to the guide.
    • The guide will accompany the contributor to the check-out station and will hand over the recorder to the volunteer working that station.