Save the Memory: The Study of Oral History in the Library

Oral history is history constructed through people's memories. In recent years, oral history has become increasingly widespread. Not only have many academic disciplines and grassroots historical groups adopted oral history methods to enrich their own histories, but its greater significance lies in providing a voice for long-overlooked groups and communities. This article explores the relationship between library history and oral history from the perspective of oral history as a means of constructing historical materials. It also analyzes the practice of oral history in libraries in the United States and Taiwan. The goal is to raise awareness among library professionals about the critical importance of preserving library history and prevent the future regret of these living histories becoming increasingly difficult to find.

Oral history is a historical approach that is based on the use of personal reminiscences. Oral library history is to writing library history that relies in large part on interviews with elderly librarians or professors who provide retrospective data on the library events, attitudes, and activities of their life-in effect a transfer of the interview. This article is a study of the library oral history in Taiwan and America. The purpose is wished to save some librarians memory which can structure the library history.