Using Archives

Navajo Indians, many on horseback, William Switzer Collection, AHS 3-32, Cline Library Special Collections and Archives, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona (also found in Navajo and Photography: A Critical History of the Representation of an American People, by James. C. Faris).
How the public uses documents, photographs, oral histories, and other materials in Special Collections is really the climax of Days of Archives. After all, collecting, offering, and preserving records aims largely at the goal of using them. Yet how patrons utilize the archives goes beyond typical historical research and family genealogy. Archives also play supporting roles in legal battles, political scandals, and hollywood productions. Most commonly, archival materials from Cline Library manage to steal scenes in popular and scholarly publications.
Navajo man with ordnance February 12, 1945 (also found in Arizona's War Town: Flagstaff, Navajo Ordnance Depot, and World War II, by John S. Westerlund).
Most of the publications that utilize photographs and research material from Special Collections emphasize Cline Library's focus on the Colorado Plateau. From books highlighting Navajo culture and the Navajo Ordnance Depot to texts celebrating Route 66 to others highlighting the history of the Grand Canyon, the archives reaches a national audience.
Rimmie Jim's Place, Highway 66 halfway between Flagstaff and Winslow, Arizona, 1925 (also found in Legendary Route 66: A Journey Through Time Along America's Mother Road, by Gyvel Young-Witzel).
The few books mentioned here simply make up the publication highlight reel. Stay tuned to discover other books that utilize materials from Special Collections, including biographies and mysteries.

Jessie Jimenez Alonzo in uniform, working for the Navajo Ordnance Depot in Bellemont, Arizona (also found in Arizona's War Town: Flagstaff, Navajo Ordnance Depot, and World War II, by John S. Westerlund).
Additional Images
Links
Cline Library's Route 66 Exhibit
Navajo and Photography
Arizona's War Town
Legendary Route 66
Digitized Collections
Navajo Army Depot Collection
Fronkse Studio Collection
Warren Family Collection