Internship and Research Opportunities at Rokeby Museum

The Rokeby Museum, located in Ferrisburgh, Vermont, presents the important involvement of an abolitionist family, the Robinsons, in the Underground Railroad through exhibits in the historic house. The most recent exhibit, Free & Safe: The Underground Railroad in Vermont, highlights the story of two fugitives from slavery and their journey to freedom and shelter at Rokeby. The Robinsons lived in the house for four generations, and the farm is now a National Historic Landmark praised for its historical integrity and the important history it tells. Not only is the site beautifully preserved, the lasting artifacts portray the artistic talents of the family as well. Rokeby represents one story in the important abolitionist and social reform movement in 19th century America and more specifically, the Vermont experience during this era. More information on Rokeby can be found here.

Rokeby has many opportunities for Middlebury College students to get involved in including marketing, producing exhibits and programs, developing social media campaigns, fundraising activities, and cataloging collections. The majority of Rokeby’s primary documents are stored and cared for by Middlebury College’s Special Collections, and thus are easily accessible to students who wish to be involved in research work. However, students would also have access to the archives at Rokeby consisting of legal and account documents, diaries, books, papers, ephemera and photographs numbering over 15,000. For those interested in history, social reform movements, museum studies, and artifacts and primary documents related to 19th century America would find working at Rokeby Museum very rewarding. As the opportunities at Rokeby are diverse and open ended, students will have the opportunity to be proactive in their work, contribute their own ideas, and work closely with museum staff.

Rokeby is looking for students to get involved as soon as possible, with opportunities starting in the Spring semester and are ongoing as long as students are interested in being involved. This could be a summer internship, or even an opportunity for history majors to pursue research for their thesis. If interested, please contact the museum’s director, Catherine Brooks at director@rokeby.org, or Dean Leary at dleary@middlebury.edu.

 

 

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