Episode 097: Billy Smith, How to Organize Your Research

by Liz CovartAugust 30, 2016

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What do historians do with all of the information they collect when they research?

How do they access their research in a way that allows them to find the information they need to write the books and articles we enjoy reading?

Billy Smith, a Professor of History at Montana State University, joins us as part of our “Doing History: How Historians Work” series to lead us on an exploration of how historians organize and access their research.

About the Series

Doing History episodes will introduce you to historians who will tell you what they know about the past and reveal how they came to their knowledge.

Each episode will air on the last Tuesday of each month in 2016.

This series is part of a partnership between Ben Franklin’s World and the Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture.

About the Show

Ben Franklin’s World is a podcast about early American history.

It is a show for people who love history and for those who want to know more about the historical people and events that have impacted and shaped our present-day world.

Each episode features a conversation with a historian who helps us shed light on important people and events in early American history.

Episode Summary

In this episode, Billy Smith, a Professor of History at Montana State University, leads us on an exploration of how historians organize and access their research.

During our exploration, Billy reveals information about his research into the lives of 70,000 people, who lived in Philadelphia during the late 18th century; How he collected, organized, and accesses his research about those early Philadelphians; And, how historians’ research organizational methods have changed over the last 30 years.

What You’ll Discover

Quantitative history and historians
Different historical records where you can find women, the poor, and African Americans
Types of data Billy records when he examines tax lists, census reports, city directories
Types of information contained in early American city directories, censuses, & tax lists
What mapping the demographic details of 70,000 early Philadelphians reveals about early American history
How Billy organizes data for 70,000 early Philadelphians
How historians’ research organizational methods have changed over the last 30 years
Overview of Fleeing Slavery digital project and runaway slave ads
Runaway slave newspaper ads
Data management systems
The need to preserve and keep accessible the digital data we collect
MEAD: Magazine of Early American Datasets
How research organizational methods differ between book and digital projects
Verbal note-taking strategies for organizing your research

Links to People, Places, and Publications

Research Software & Apps

Archives & Institutions

Complementary Episodes

Resources

Time Warp Question

Technology changes quickly, as do the things we can do with it. In your opinion, how will historians conduct research and organize their information in the future?