THE COLLECTION 

The Oral History Collection contains over 600 tapes of narrators’ memories. The collection includes Miriam Breckenridge's series of interviews recording the history of the sheep industry in south-central Idaho, early history of Sun Valley, Ernest Hemingway in Idaho, the Forest Service, pioneer life, early mining, among other topics.

The Photograph Collection contains over 9,000 photographs, including many taken by the Union Pacific publicity department, those taken by pioneer photographers: Mallory, Nock, Gardner, and Eugene Antz, Lou Holliday, and photos from many family collections.

Other materials include books, merchant ledgers, autobiographies, letters, journals, newspaper and magazine clippings, scrapbooks, mining reports and newspapers of microform, videos, cassette tapes of local events, and ephemera.

ACCESS TO THE COLLECTION 

Requests to use the Regional History Collection must be made by contacting the Regional History Department. The Regional History Department staff will make the materials available to the patron and provide them with information about any legal restrictions. Researchers visiting the library may take advantage of the department’s computer station to search for their materials. Patrons calling or contacting by mail, FAX, or email will receive a listing of resources from which to choose.

USE OF THE COLLECTION 

All Regional History materials must be used in the department. Materials from the vault may be used under staff supervision. Fragile documents and books may not be photocopied. Photocopies of short (less than one page) passages from the oral history transcripts may be allowed at staff discretion.

There are four pages of photograph information. An order form must be completed and approved and the fees paid before an order is sent to the staff photographer or for photocopying. These forms can be mailed, emailed, sent by FAX, or obtained in person. Allow 3-4 weeks for processing and additional time if you want the photographs to be mailed.

SERVICES TO PATRONS 

• Providing Access to the Collection
• Reading Area
• Researcher’s Writing Center
• Audio-visual Room
• Microform reader / printer
• Photograph Reproduction

DONATIONS TO THE COLLECTION 

Through generous donations of written and visual records, researchers have been able to study and understand much about the history of an area and its people. You may wish to donate items to our collection, where we can properly archive them to preserve them for as long as possible. Since they do not circulate outside of the room, they are in a controlled environment. Donor forms are used to transfer ownership. Please contact the Regional History Librarian for further information.

FOR MORE INFORMATION: 

Contact the:

• Regional History Librarian
  Ph. (208) 726-3493 ext. 112
  FAX: (208) 726-0050
  Email: reghist@thecommunitylibrary.org