RESOURCEs & LIBRARY

Oral history preserves lived experience through recorded conversations. It captures how people remember places, events, and communities in their own words.

• Define what you want to learn and why this interview is necessary
• Clearly explain the project’s goals and how the interview will be used
• Obtain informed consent and permission to record
   

• Study the historical context using reliable secondary sources
• Identify gaps in existing records that a firsthand account could fill
• Use your research to design focused, meaningful questions
   

• Select individuals with relevant lived experience or inherited knowledge
• Reach out professionally and respectfully
• Introduce yourself, describe your project, and explain why their perspective matters
• Offer multiple date and time options and state the expected interview length
   

• Draft questions in advance
• Use open-ended prompts rather than yes/no or leading questions
• Start with general topics and progress to more personal or sensitive ones
• Prepare follow-up questions that explore motivations, feelings, and impact
   

• Choose a quiet, comfortable setting with minimal distractions
• Test recording devices and microphones beforehand
• Position microphones close enough for clear audio quality
• Turn off phones, radios, and other sources of background noise

• Treat the interview as a respectful conversation, not an interrogation
• Listen more than you speak
• Allow pauses without rushing to fill them
• Avoid interrupting, correcting, or debating the narrator
• Gently guide the conversation back if it strays too far off topic.
   

• Be calm, patient, and reassuring
• Use body language (eye contact, nodding) rather than verbal fillers
• Be aware of cultural, generational, and social differences
• Create a space where the narrator feels safe sharing their story
   

• Begin and end at the agreed-upon time
• Ask your most important questions early
• Leave room for unexpected but meaningful stories

• Thank the narrator sincerely at the end of the interview 
• Send a written thank-you message within 24 hours
• Offer to share the completed project
• Reconfirm consent if the project’s scope changes
   

• Store recordings and transcripts in a reliable archive or digital repository
• Label and organize files clearly
• Ensure long-term accessibility for future researchers and community members

Oral history is the ethical care of memory. Preparation, attentive listening, and responsible preservation ensure that personal stories become lasting historical sources.