A little over one year ago I began my journey as a Preservation and Government Documents technician at Minnesota State University, Mankato. After practical experience, watching videos and webinars, and taking Preservation 101 through the NEDCC, I still needed experience in a hands-on workshop for book care and repair techniques. So, I packed my bags and drove 330 miles to the small town of Mount Carroll, IL where I knew I would discover big opportunity...
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What Did I Learn at the Campbell Center?
From
November 17-20, a course called "Care and Repair of Book Collections" presented
itself as a chance for me to grow professionally. My course was taught by an excellent
instructor, conservator, book binder, and printer, Andrew Huot from Big River Bindery.
After four days of 8 hour workshops, my classmates and I learned a variety of
useful techniques in the world of book repair. We all had hands-on experience
with the following:
- Book Cleaning
- Tip Ins
- Hinge Tightening
- Spine Repair
- Repairing a Detached Endsheet
- Using Filmoplast P Tape for Tear Repair
- Using Heat Set Tape for Tear Repair
- Using Japanese Tissue and Paste
- Page Corner Repair
- Reback with the Boards On
- Reback with the Boards Off
- Creating a New Case
- Creating a Self-Closing Wrapper
- Creating a Tuxedo Wrapper (box)
- Creating a Custom Corrugated Clamshell Box
- Endcap Repair
- Red Rot Treatment
- Humidification (2 techniques)
- Making Bookcloth
- Double Fan Adhesive Binding with a New Case
- Case Corner Repair
- Encapsulation
Other Things I Enjoyed About the Campbell Center:
- Beyond the hands-on experience, we listened to lectures covering preservation topics and had plenty of time for discussion.
- Building real connections with colleagues within the field (classmates and instructors) and staff at the Campbell Center.
- School Mascot. There is a very sweet and loving cat that lives on campus :)
- Historic Campus based near the Mississippi River. It was a beautiful area!
- My instructor and the instructor of another course were more than happy to answer any and all questions.
- The staff at the Campbell Center was very good (personable, great customer service, and easy to communicate with).
- Everyone was there to learn, grow, and connect. And the classes and instructors change all the time. There is always opportunity for growth.
Check out their website: http://www.campbellcenter.org/
*Note: I was not contacted to endorse the Campbell Center. This post is based on my opinion and experience alone.
Have you ever been to the Campbell Center for preservation training? What was your experience like? Please comment below!
