Heritage and Research Center
Yellowstone National Park
Summer 2010
Overview
Yellowstone National Park is the world’s first national park and was so designated by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872. It has also been designated a World Heritage Site (1978) and International Biosphere Reserve (1976), and is the only National Park Service site to be an official affiliate of the National Archives and Records Administration. The park’s archives, library and museum collections contain several million items and constitute one of the largest collections in the National Park Service. Yellowstone’s collections contain immeasurably valuable information related to the history of not only Yellowstone, but also the conservation movement in a world context. They include:
> 2,500 linear feet of historic records affiliated with the National Archives that document management of the park from its inception in 1872, through U.S. Army administration, to the present;
> 90,000 photographic prints and negatives that illustrate park history and resources from the days of trappers and the earliest explorers of the region;
> 20,000 rare books and other manuscripts, including most of the rarest publications on Yellowstone still extant; and
> More than 300,000 natural science specimens and cultural objects ranging from fossils, historic vehicles, and Native American artifacts, to original paintings by artist Thomas Moran and photographs by William Henry Jackson.
Yellowstone National Park’s new Heritage and Research Center (HRC), a 32,000 square foot, state-of-the-art collections storage and research facility, was completed in summer 2004 and the park’s entire collection (with the exception of the historic vehicle collection) was moved to the building at that time. This new facility provides a 500% increase in archives and library office, processing and storage space, and a 700% increase in museum space. There is also 1,600 square feet of rotating exhibit space, as well as the park’s archeology lab and herbarium storage.
Internship
The internship will be for 10 – 12 weeks during Summer 2010 with the park’s archives, library and museum collection program within the Branch of Cultural Resources, at the HRC. The intern will be introduced to the archives and curatorial field and mentored by the park archivist, curator and curatorial staff. Duties will include processing, rehousing and cataloging archival collections into the park’s collections management database, ANCS+ (Automated National Catalog System), and organizing and rehousing the large map and oversized document collection. The intern will also spend time at the HRC public contact station, assisting visitors and interpreting the lobby exhibits as well as the collections in storage. The intern will be an integral part of the curatorial staff for the summer and will be involved in all aspects of the program, including performing collections management functions at museums in the park’s interior, meeting with other branch staff (historian, archivist, librarians, anthropologist, historic architect, and archeologist), and will have the opportunity to meet with staff from the Branch of Natural Resources (bison and wolf biologists, fisheries staff, botanist) in order to pursue his/her own interests and to obtain a clear sense of Yellowstone National Park’s (YNP) operations and mission. For additional information, please contact Colleen E. Curry, YNP’s supervisory museum curator, at 307-344-2262 or colleen_curry@nps.gov
Housing and Stipend
The intern will be required to work a 40-hour week and will be paid a GS-05 salary (in 2009 that was $12.95/hour). Shared park housing is assigned for this position, the rent for which will be deducted from the intern’s bi-weekly pay (park housing roughly costs $175 - $250 a month).
Supervision
The intern will be supervised and evaluated by the park archivist. He/she will function as an entry-level employee and will be expected to conduct himself/herself with professional dress and demeanor and adhere to a 40-hour work week as determined by the curator.
Security
Since 9/11, the federal government has required background investigations on all employees using computers, including interns and volunteers. The successful applicant must be willing to complete a background investigation form and get finger-printed by a law enforcement agency.
To Apply
Only current students and/or those able to provide proof of enrollment (if the successful candidate) in an accredited college or university for the Fall 2010 semester are eligible to apply due to the hiring authority used (STEP – Student Temporary Employment Program).
By February 12, 2010, send letter of interest and resume with list of three references to:
Colleen E. Curry
Supervisory Museum Curator
Yellowstone Heritage and Research Center
P. O. Box 168
Internship - Yellowstone National Park, WY 82190
(307) 344-2262
Colleen_Curry@nps.gov
