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Sarah Arntz

Sarah Arntz received her B.A. in Journalism and History from Butler University, her M.A. in Museum Studies from the University of Oklahoma, and her C.A. from the Academy of Certified Archivists. She is a member of the American Alliance of Museums, and assists in exhibit and display curation, as well as research in local and cultural history, Civil Rights history, and genealogy.

Latest Blog Posts

Dr Bunch

Metro Archives' Fall Intern, Jamie Erwin, had the pleasure of processing a unique collection for her internship - the "Dr. Ray C. Bunch Collection". If we have any other doctors' collections in our repository, it wouldn't be as thorough and informative as this one. But I'll allow Jamie to tell you about Dr. Bunch and his family in her own words. 

Tennessean clipping of St. Louis NARA fire

July 12th of this year marked the 50th anniversary of one of the most devastating events to occur in the archives' world - the fire that broke out at the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis. If you're not familiar with this event, check out this post that discusses what happened and how the records in Metro Archives help make up for the damaged records. 

Sidney O'Berry Collection - State Capitol covered in snow in 1976

If you're dreaming of a white Christmas this year, you might get your wish. In Nashville? Yes! How common is that? Not very, according to our weather reports and news clippings. But here are the highlights from the few times it has occurred. 

I originally wrote this blog post for March, 2018, because for some unknown reason, genealogy research seems to pick up around the end of February through March. Well, the trend has occurred again during quarantine, and this time makes more sense - you're home and you figure, why not? For whatever reason, we welcome the frequency of usage of our genealogy records. Here's a list of our most helpful and commonly-used materials, and some other tips when doing family research, with a few new additions. UPDATED AGAIN IN 2022 WITH THE ADDITION OF ANCESTRY LIBRARY EDITION TO THE LIBRARY WEBSITE!

Scarritt-Bennett Center Collection - Celebration of Culture Festival

The semester is soon to wrap up, so Metro Archives is bringing you another cool blog post from our fall intern, Morgan Stence. Morgan processed the Scarritt Bennett Collection, primarily containing materials from the Celebration of Cultures Festival. Learn about it from her own words. 

Fire Company Number 4

October is Archives' Month - a month-long celebration of archivists and archival work. And this year's theme is celebrating the 100th anniversary of Fire Prevention Week. So "We didn't Start the Fire!", but we're helping prevent future ones from happening!

Unknown Green Hills home

One of the many services Metro Archives offers is property research, which can be a complicated process, so this blog post is here to provide some clarity of what's involved and how you can start the research on your own! And no, we can't tell you if your home is haunted, sorry. 

Portrait of Genevieve Baird Farris

This edition of the Metro Archives' intern blog post series comes to you from summer intern, Sabrina Austin, who processed the Genevieve Baird Farris Collection for her internship project. While processing, Sabrina learned about the strong affection the Harris family had for each other, as well as how active they were in Nashville social life. Learn about them from Sabrina herself!

1888 Sanborn Maps

The third week of June marks "Lightning Safety Awareness Week", and we just so happen to be transcribing more weather journals right now thanks to volunteers, so here are some excerpts from these journals that highlight some of the various "electrical events" in Nashville's past. 

Military portrait of Bernard Sanderson

This blog post comes to you from Metro Archives' intern, Sami Olesen, who processed the Bernard Sanderson Collection for her internship project. While processing the collection, she learned that Bernard Sanderson led quite an eventful life. But don't listen to me - let Sami tell you his story. 

Tennessean clipping from May, 1950

On Friday, April 1st, 2022, the 1950 U.S. Census records were released, and that provides a lot of new information for anyone researching their family. This set came with some new ways to search as well, which also comes with some bumps in the road, so here are some helpful tips of how to conduct your research. 

Emancipation Records for James Hendricks

Of the various projects that we work on in Metro Archives, the Nashville Enslaved and Free People of Color Database is one we started several years ago, and are still actively adding to. If you're interested in learning more about what the database includes and how to use it, please read on. 

Nashville City Cemetery

This year marks the 200th anniversary of the founding of Nashville's oldest continuously-operated public cemetery - the Nashville City Cemetery. Nestled quaintly on the northeast side of Fort Negley and just off 4th Ave S, the cemetery might seem like only a quiet piece of Nashville's history, with only the graves of many Nashvillians. But if it could speak, it would have many interesting anecdotes to tell.

Listing for W.T. Berry & Co. in 1859

Bookstores tend to be a popular shopping spot during the holidays, especially some of our local businesses such as Parnassus and Elder's Bookstore. But has that ever made you curious about the history of Nashville's local bookstores? Archives' Intern Sapphire is here to fill you in on a little literary history. 

Evidence tag from the weapon shot by Jake Rader

Nashville is not a city that lacks in stories of feuds and strange murder cases, and I'm bringing you another one just in time for Halloween. It involves a business rivalry gone bad, from our recently-indexed Criminal Court Case Files. 

 

View of Archives front doors

October is not only the month of pumpkin spice, ghosts, and candy corn...it's also Archives' Month! That means it's the month that we honor the work of all archivists, and work to raise awareness of the importance of historical documents and records. So, in celebration of this fun-filled month, here's a little behind-the-scenes peak at Metro Archives and their staff. 

Page from Newsweek magazine, from September 2001

This is part II in the series commemorating the 20th anniversary of the 9/11/2001 attacks. This post continues with more library staff memories of that day. 

Photo of 9/11 Memorial in NYC

To commemorate the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, and to remember all those lost due to that day's tragic events, this post takes a look back at that day through the eyes of several Library staff members, and a few other unique perspectives. 

Can you believe it?! The downtown library has called Church Street home for 20 years now! Let's take a look back at the history of the downtown library, and how it came to call 615 Church Street home. 

From Metro Archives Photos - Metro Council member, Thelma Harper

The world lost an extraordinary woman on April 22nd, 2021, when former State Senator Thelma Harper passed away. After making history by becoming the first African American female elected to the State Senate, her work of shattering ceilings was far from over. Here's a look back at her impressive career and generous life.