The two objects I focused on were the Haverford Black Student League’s letter and the Uncle Tom’s Cabin Vase.
Starting with the letter, the page lists the date it was archived, some tagged topics and information of where it is stored. However, I am left curious to the context of the letter. What was listed in their budget proposal? What was the given reason for its rejection? Were there any other protests in response? What was the board’s response to the letter? Was there a resolution that was reached and if so, what was it? These are all questions that remain unanswered as There is no mention of the context that warranted the letter or of the events that transpired concurrently and following it. While the content of the letter reveals its intention, the recordkeeper either fails to connect this object to related materials like the rejected budget proposal, or the board’s response to the letter prevents historical continuity from being formed. This could be remedied by linking together all the documents and photos associated with the protest and even all actions by the Black Student League.
The vase depicting Uncle Tom, on the other hand, presents far more context that places it within a greater societal continuity. The page describes the significance of the scene portrayed in the ceramic as well as what the object itself was used for. Additionally, it also contains a record of a journalist giving their opinion of the piece; While it does reinforce the earlier description, I am curious to know how ubiquitous this opinion was as the time and in what circles it was held.
The two pieces are hard to compare as they come from two very different times. Yet I would have to say that the archive of the vase does a far more comprehensive job of tying its object to the proper context although I wonder just how strong some of the connections, specifically the quote, are.
