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Author: Erin Rushing

Erin Clements Rushing is the Outreach Librarian for Smithsonian Libraries and Archives. She enjoys sharing the Libraries and Archives' treasures with new audiences and telling the stories from the stacks through various outreach efforts. She coordinates social media and the blog (Unbound), plans tours and manages the internship program. She also handles rights and reproductions for library collection images and acts as point person for copyright concerns. Erin holds an M.L.S from the University of Maryland, as well as a B.A. in History and Art History.

“Pruning” at the National Museum of American History Library

Erin Rushing
August 18, 2014
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NMAH Intern Jenn Parent
NMAH Intern Jenn Parent

This post was written by Jenn Parent, intern at the National Museum of American History Library. Jenn is a recent graduate from Kennesaw State University in Kennesaw, GA with a BS in Anthropology.  She will be relocating and attending graduate school at University of Washington-Seattle for a Master’s in Library Science this September.

I spent this summer as a library intern at the National Museum of American History and I have thoroughly enjoyed my time here and learned so much! What did I get to do while I was here? Let me tell you…

I worked on two main projects; first, the impressive trade catalog collection housed here. Approximately 500,000 pieces of trade literature are available for use by curators, researchers, fellows, or anyone who wants to take a peek. The trade lit includes sales brochures, product catalogs, price lists, company histories, correspondence, and other similar items from about 30,000 companies. My tasks varied; most often I was entering new (to us) trade lit into the system. Most of what I entered fell within the medical sciences field, but I still saw a wide variety of really nifty items, including surgical equipment from the 1800s, disposable clothing of the 1960-1970s, and smoking accessories (which included ‘water pipes’).

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The Making of “Once There Were Billions”

Erin Rushing
August 15, 2014
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Once There Were Billions, the new Smithsonian Libraries/BHL exhibit at the National Museum of Natural History. The Passenger Pigeon on the left, with her back to the viewer, is Martha, the last Passenger Pigeon that died 100 years ago in 1914.
Once There Were Billions, the new Smithsonian Libraries/BHL exhibit at the National Museum of Natural History. The Passenger Pigeon on the left, with her back to the viewer, is Martha, the last Passenger Pigeon that died 100 years ago in 1914.

This post was written by Grace Costantino, Outreach and Communication Manager for the Biodiversity Heritage Library. It first appeared on the BHL blog here.

You are living in the midst of earth’s sixth great extinction event. You’ve been living in it since you were born. So have your parents, your grandparents, your great-great-great-great-grandparents, and all of your ancestors for about 10,000 years. It dates back to the extinction of the mammoths and has been increasingly accelerating as human actions and climate change reshape the balance of our planet. Within the next century, 75% of the conservatively estimated 8.75 million species on earth may be extinct.

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Advancement intern enjoys a taste of DC

Erin Rushing
August 8, 2014
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Kelly Baxter 1This post was written by Kelly Baxter, Advancement Intern.

Like so many, I have always been very fond of libraries. I’ve tried to live by the motto that “one should live and work in places where there are books strewn about” and I’ve fared pretty well on that front so far. Yet despite my lifelong affinity for all things bookish, others are generally surprised to discover that I am currently channeling the knowledge I am picking up in library science graduate school into exploring library fundraising and advancement. The Smithsonian Libraries were not surprised, however, and awarded me a professional development internship with their Advancement Office for six weeks this summer to learn more about their gift-in-kind program.

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Welcome Preservation Intern, Kathryn Boodle!

Erin Rushing
July 30, 2014
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This post was written by Vanessa Haight Smith, head of Preservation Services.

This year Kathryn Boodle has been awarded the Smithsonian Libraries Professional Development Internship in Preservation.  She arrived this week at the Smithsonian Libraries Preservation Department directly upon graduating from the MA program in the Conservation of Art on Paper and Books and Archival Material at the Camberwell College of Arts in London.

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