Archivists
deal with all types of materials in collections, from maps to letters to books
and other priceless materials. Many of the materials that archivists work with
on a daily basis are one of a kind and simply irreplaceable. With so much
history to keep and preserve, what happens to things like a brochure you would
pick up at a convention or symposium or the travel information you find as you
pass through a town?
Ephemera
is defined as any transitory written or printed matter meant for eventual repression;
or paper items (such as posters, broadsides, and tickets) that were originally
meant to be discarded after use but have since become collectibles. These items
may seem insignificant to us right now; however, in the future they will give
archivists and historians a glimpse into the past.
Over
the course of my summer internship at the Montana Historical Society, I have
had the chance to work with and organize the large collection of Ephemera that
resides here. With nearly one-thousand different topics covered in the Ephemera
collection, there is something of interest for everyone. Topics range from
cities in Montana to railroads to wars and even sled dog races.
While
adding to these ever growing files, I have found a few of my favorite items.
The first would be a ration booklet (above) that was distributed during World War II.
These booklets were distributed by the U.S. Office of Price Administration
after the U.S. entered the war. The purpose of these booklets was to dictate the
quantity of certain goods a family or person was allowed to buy. Two of these
booklets, issued to Montanans, reside in the Ephemera files.
In
1937, a gentleman wrote to the State of Montana requesting information about
the state. He was answered with a packet full of information concerning all
parts of Montana. While only a small portion of the packet is shown (right), the
entire contents of the packet, as well as the original envelop, are housed at
the MHS Research Center.
A
customer walking into Helena’s Holter Hardware in 1915 might have seen a stack
of colorful John Deere catalogs sitting on the counter. Many of these catalogs
include brightly colored illustrations as well fold outs of the newest products
John Deere had to offer. This catalog (below) and many more are in the Ephemera files.
This is just a small sampling of the thousands of items that are included in the Montana Historical Society’s Ephemera collection. This collection is ever growing as theater tickets, catalogs, tourist brochures, menus, train schedules, and more are continually added to this form of historic record.
