Brief Abstract:

In 2009 the National Historical Publications and Records Commission awarded a grant to the Railroad Commission of Texas to digitize 171 linear feet or 4,623 folders of records of national historical significance from oil and gas regulatory hearings that occurred between 1932 and 1972. The Commission’s collection serves as a digital archival exhibition and resource for curators: resources from the Commission informed the development of a permanent exhibit at the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum. Those resources are now available online, providing the opportunity for museums throughout the world to access this unique collection.

The proposed case-study showcase will highlight the materials included in the collection, will address how to re-purpose metadata to develop a finding aid, and will discuss how a non-archival institution using a vendor for the digitization process was able to secure funding for an archival project from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission.

Abstract:

In 2009 the National Historical Publications and Records Commission awarded a grant to the Railroad Commission of Texas to digitize 171 linear feet or 4,623 folders that contain records of national historical significance from oil and gas regulatory hearings that occurred between 1932 and 1972. The Railroad Commission of Texas is the oldest regulatory agency in Texas and one of the oldest in the United States. The Commission has primary regulatory jurisdiction over the oil and natural gas industry. The hearings files document an economic, political, and environmental history central to the development of the state of Texas and of an industry fundamental to twentieth and twenty-first century life in the United States. With this project, the Commission sought to allow greater access and promote historical understanding of the nexus of energy and environment as modeled by the development of the energy industries in the state of Texas. This project is unique as it represents a living history that is as useful to the historian seeking to understand the paradigm of U.S. energy development, as it is to engineer seeking new sources of energy.

The hearings files contain correspondence, examiners’ notes, and exhibits that can include geological and seismic data, well logs, reserve estimates, calculated depletion rates, plats, and maps. The Commission digitized a segment of its collection of hearings files for the East Texas Oil Field region, which was the sight of the most prolific oil boom in Texas history. The East Texas field encompassed five counties and furnished fuel for World War II. The Commission’s collection serves as a digital archival exhibition, while also providing museum curators access to materials to develop exhibitions that will allow a broader audience to better understand the development of the oil and gas industry as well as the development of a regulatory entity in Texas. Resources from the Commission informed the development of a permanent exhibit at the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum. Those resources are now available online, providing the opportunity for museums throughout the world to access this unique collection.

The proposed case-study showcase will highlight the materials included in the collection, will address how to re-purpose metadata to develop a finding aid, and will discuss how a non-archival institution using a vendor for the digitization process was able to secure funding for an archival project from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission. This collection is a resource for museum professionals seeking to develop exhibits documenting an economic, political, and environmental history central to the development of the state of Texas and of an industry fundamental to twentieth and twenty-first century life in the United States.

Session Info 

• Keywords: digitization project, historical content, oil and gas content, grant project, exhibit development
• Relevance: The oil and gas hearings files collection is relevant as a resource readily available to be used as background research and exhibit material for curators and museum staff of local and state history museums; museums developing exhibits related to oil and gas, energy, industrial, political, and economic regulation topics; and exhibits portraying mid-twentieth century small town and rural life and work.

Presenters:

Susan Rhyne

Manager, Information Services

Railroad Commission of Texas

Bio: Susan Rhyne is the Manager of the Information Services section of the

Railroad Commission of Texas, which includes records, imaging, and reference

services as well as print and electronic publication sales. She began her

career with the Commission in 1979 by establishing a library for the Oil and

Gas Division, which later expanded to serve the Commission as a whole. In

her current role, Susan oversees an ongoing digitization project that to date

has digitized over 500,000 oil and gas well files. She holds a Master of

Library Science degree from the School of Library and Information Science at

the University of Texas at Austin.

Colleen Forrest

Grants Coordinator

Railroad Commission of Texas

Bio: Colleen Forrest is the Grants Coordinator for the Railroad Commission of

Texas. She holds a Master of Public Affairs from the University of Texas at

Austin, as well as a Master of Arts in Later Modern British History from the

London School of Economics and Political Science.