"Throughout my childhood, I loved history and natural history. I visited museums with my dad, and my mom was a high school science teacher," says Brittany Contratto ’19MS, Senior Archivist at the Museum of Science, Boston. "My goal was to work in a museum. I was interested in how collections are organized and shared."
She pursued an undergraduate degree in historic preservation before enrolling in the Archives concentration at SLIS. "I’m thankful for Simmons! I was working full time and in school part time. One semester I took two in-person classes, and it was a challenge. I found that taking one in-person and one online class helped me balance my studies with my work and personal life. That’s a big benefit in attending Simmons."
Contratto began her role at the Museum of Science in February 2021, and the Archives itself was established in 2017 with funding from Bloomberg Philanthropies. "There is so much potential for growth and outreach. We want to build the Archive to serve internal and external audiences, and to share what an archive is and what it does," says Contratto. "The Museum is almost 200 years old with relevant institutional records beginning in 1814! But we aren’t just about the past, we’re focused on future impact."
The Museum of Science was established in 1830 as the Boston Society of Natural History, a place where naturalists and scientists came together to share studies and critique each other’s work. They started to display specimens to the public, and research material was stored in the research library. Now, the archive houses institutional records going back to the early days of the Museum, as well as scientific manuscripts.
Contratto is currently in the processing phase, organizing collections and taking inventory. "We’re thinking about how we can engage visitors, on site and online," she says. "We have so many visitors and researchers looking for images of historic exhibits and sharing experiences that they had visiting the Museum as children. It shows how ingrained the Museum is in the greater Boston community."
Contratto’s goal is to showcase archival content through social media. First, she is formalizing finding aids before expanding the archive’s outreach and online presence. "We have a collection of papers from H. Bradford Washburn, the director who transformed the Boston Society of Natural History into the Museum of Science. He was an avid cartographer and mountaineer, who took photos of his expeditions." The illustrations from Samuel Scudder's scientific studies of butterflies are a personal favorite. "They are beautifully detailed illustrations showing each stage of metamorphosis. He showed how the butterfly wings might bend or flow."
Past experience in archives has prepared Contratto for this challenge. "I’ve gained something at every workplace, whether it was a small, close-knit staff or a ten-person department," she says. "In a small department you get to wear more hats, but with a team you can focus on a particular goal. Whenever I could, I pursued side projects to develop my own professional interests. I thought, what would it look like if we included digital humanities projects, or conducted usability studies? Thinking that way is helpful for career development."
She also acknowledges the role Simmons played in her career. "I appreciate that we had instructors who were current professionals in the archives field. We got a solid understanding of theory, how it was implemented in a workplace, and what that work environment looked like," she says. "The instructors offered practical advice on how to implement best practices with limited resources. It was helpful to hear their perspectives."
Learn more about the Museum’s Archives and explore their finding aids on ArchivesSpace.