Historians

Historians typically perform the following tasks: • Gather historical data from sources such as archives, court records, diaries, news files, and photographs, as well as from books, pamphlets, and periodicals. • Organize data, and analyze and interpret its authenticity and relative significance. • Prepare publications and exhibits, or review those prepared by others, to ensure their historical accuracy. • Organize information for publication and for other means of dissemination, such as via storage media or the Internet. • Conduct historical research as a basis for the identification, conservation, and reconstruction of historic places and materials. • Conserve and preserve manuscripts, records, and other artifacts. • Present historical accounts in terms of individuals or social, ethnic, political, economic, or geographic groupings. • Research the history of a particular country or region, or of a specific time period. • Conduct historical research, and publish or present findings and theories. • Determine which topics to research, or pursue research topics specified by clients or employers. • Recommend actions related to historical art, such as which items to add to a collection or which items to display in an exhibit. • Research and prepare manuscripts in support of public programming and the development of exhibits at historic sites, museums, libraries, and archives. • Speak to various groups, organizations, and clubs to promote the aims and activities of historical societies. • Advise or consult with individuals and institutions regarding issues such as the historical authenticity of materials or the customs of a specific historical period. • Interview people to gather information about historical events and to record oral histories. • Trace historical development in a particular field, such as social, cultural, political, or diplomatic history. • Coordinate activities of workers engaged in cataloging and filing materials. • Collect detailed information on individuals for use in biographies. • Teach and conduct research in colleges, universities, museums, and other research agencies and schools. • Edit historical society publications.