Dorothy Sheridan

Dorothy Sheridan
Born 1948 (age 69–70)
Galway
Nationality British
Occupation Archivist and historian
Years active 1974-present
Known for Director of the Mass Observation Archive (1990-2010)

Professor Dorothy Sheridan MBE, FRSA was the Director of the Mass Observation Archive (MOA) from 1990 to 2008. She is a Trustee of the MOA and an Honorary Professor of History at the University of Sussex.

Early life and studies

Dorothy Elizabeth Sheridan was born in Galway, on the west coast of Ireland, but moved to the Yorkshire Dales when she was two.[1] She grew up there in cottages with outside toilets and no running water. Her parents were active campaigners in the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament and took Sheridan to demonstrations and protests.

At school, Sherdian obtained eight O-levels and four A-levels. She then went to Brighton in 1967, where she studied Sociology at the University of Sussex.[2]

Mass Observation Archive

Tom Harrisson offered Sheridan a temporary job in 1974, working to establish the Mass Observation papers as a history resource.[3] This job became permanent, with Sheridan acting as the first archivist.[4] She performed a variety of jobs there, beginning by labelling boxes and telephoning Harrisson with updates and moving on to develop and promote the archive. In 1976, Harrisson had given her money to buy a car and learn to drive so that she could chauffeur him when he visited, but he died before this happened so she purchased a motorbike instead.[1]

In 1981, Sheridan co-founded the launch of the contemporary phase of Mass Observation, the Mass Observation Project that collects new material about everyday life.[5]

Sheridan became Director of the MOA in 1990.[2] She acted as researcher and consultant on the digital resources developing from the archive, and had to adjust to tasks such as electronic research support, which she found challenging.[1]

In 2010, Sheridan retired from her role as Director, but continued her involvement as a Trustee of the MOA.[6]

Publications

Sheridan has written and co-authored a number of books, largely involving Mass Observation materials.

  • Speak for Yourself: Mass Observation Anthology, 1937-49 (with Angus Calder, 1984).
  • Among You Taking Notes (1985).
  • Mass Observation at the Movies (1987).
  • Wartime Women: A Mass Observation Anthology (1990).
  • Writing Ourselves: Mass-Observation and Literacy Practices (with Brian Street & David Bloome, 2000).
  • "The Mass Observation Archive: A History", Mass Observation Online (2009).[7]

Other roles

Sheridan became the Head of Special Collections at Sussex in 2000, working in this role until retiring in 2008.[2]

Sheridan is an advisor to the National Life Stories project at the British Library and acted as consultant on the "Observing the Eighties" project, which brought together materials from the Life Stories and MOA.[8][9][10]

Sheridan was a member of the management committee of community publishing group QueenSpark Books between 1996 and 2010, and continues to be involved in their work as a patron.[3]

Honours and awards

Sheridan received an MBE in 1991.[3] She was also elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.[6]

The Open University awarded Sheridan an honorary doctorate, which she described as her "career high" in 2007.[1]

In 2011, the University of Sussex made Sheridan a 50th Anniversary Fellow. She is also an Honorary Professor at the University, where she co-founded the Life History Research Centre.[6]

Sheridan is Visiting Professor at the University of Brighton, where she is on the advisory board of the Centre for Memory, History and Narratives.[6]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Arnot, Chris (2007-06-02). "The archivist Dorothy Sheridan: Come file with me". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2017-10-03.
  2. 1 2 3 "50 Years: Dorothy Sherdian". University of Sussex. 2011.
  3. 1 2 3 Dennett, Melita. "Meet QueenSpark Books' patron Dorothy Sheridan". QueenSpark Books. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  4. ↑ Williams, Joe. "Memories and reflections - Dorothy Sheridan and Lucy Noakes in conversation". www.massobs.org.uk. Retrieved 2017-10-03.
  5. ↑ "Mass Observation Project". Mass Observation. Mass Observation. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  6. 1 2 3 4 "Dorothy Sheridan MBE". University of Brighton: Arts and Culture. Retrieved 2017-10-03.
  7. ↑ Sheridan, Dorothy. "The Mass Observation Archive: A History". Mass Observation Online. Adam Matthew Digital. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  8. ↑ "National Life Stories". The British Library. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  9. ↑ "Observing the 80s". University of Sussex Blogs. University of Sussex. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  10. ↑ "People: Centre for the History of War and Society : University of Sussex". University of Sussex. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
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