Transmitting culture by preserving women?s history

Manuscript collections around the world contain the writings of people from varied cultures ? the words of life and living. The Library at Brigham Young University (BYU) in Provo, Utah, focuses on collecting the writings of Latter-day Saints or Mormons and a part of that is the women?s collection. Interest in the lives and contributions of women increases with each decade. Much of history was given through the eyes of men, and more needs to be done on women?s lives and views. The purpose of the women?s manuscript collection is to document women?s life experiences in order to illustrate their roles, daily living and accomplishments. The value of these collections for understanding the past and giving substance to the present is immense. Culture and family values are passed along in large part due to women?s involvement in children?s and other women?s lives. A quote from Carol Cornwall Madsen, a historian and author, explains this well. Women have long been recognized as preservers, determined to find ways to hold on to the past and link it to the present and future. Maybe in their role as creators of life they feel more keenly the continuity of generations and seek to connect them through a shared memory, either through artifacts lovingly passed from generation to generation, or through oral and written means whereby traditions and customs as well as thoughts and experiences are carefully transmitted.