Piersall ’27 Works to Preserve the Story of 9/11 at Library of Congress

Piersall is serving as a junior fellow in the Serial and Government Publications Division at the Library of Congress, where she is processing the library’s 9/11 newspaper collection. The archive documents global newspaper coverage of the September 11 attacks, preserving how communities around the world understood and responded to the events of that day.

In her role, Piersall is helping make the collection more accessible to researchers by processing materials, preparing a digital landing page, and curating an in-house display commemorating the 25th anniversary of 9/11. For her, the internship represents a natural continuation of interests she has developed so far in her time at Hamilton. 

“As a history and art history double major, I’ve been especially interested in how the media shapes public understanding of historical events,” she said.

Her academic experiences have helped encourage her to think critically about the relationship among text, images, and historical memory, particularly during periods of crisis and conflict. 

“I’m grateful for the opportunity to contribute to accessibility efforts on a national scale while gaining invaluable hands-on experience in a humanities career.”

Piersall credits Professor of History Kevin Grant and Assistant Professor of Art History Nadya Bair with helping shape her interests in photography, media history, and archival work. Grant’s course Europe in Photos introduced her to the history of photography and the complex networks through which images are produced and circulated, while Bair’s Visual Culture of World War II gave her experience working with sensitive historical materials.

“Grant and Bair’s emphasis on critically engaging with text and image encouraged me to think more deeply about the role archives play in preserving and interpreting history,” she said.

Outside the classroom, Piersall has built extensive experience in museums and collections work. She serves as both a docent at Hamilton’s Wellin Museum of Art and editor for Collection magazine, experiences that strengthen her interest in public-facing humanities work and collections research. She also completed Hamilton’s curatorial studies program, interning at the Fenimore Art Museum in Cooperstown, N.Y. There, she curated a photography exhibition featuring Associated Press wire photographs of the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War, where she conducted research and wrote interpretive materials for museum visitors.

This past spring semester, Piersall studied at the University of Edinburgh, where she continued to explore U.S. history and avant-garde art history while volunteering at the university’s Talbot Rice Gallery. She also gained hands-on archival experience through College Archivist Jeremy Katz’s Archives Practice course, processing materials related to former Hamilton Professor of Art James Penney and making them accessible to the campus community. 

As a first-generation college student, the opportunity to contribute to a project of national significance is especially meaningful. “Although my previous museum and curatorial experiences differ somewhat from my current work at the Library of Congress, the core goals of accessibility, preservation, and public engagement remain the same,” Piersall said. “I’m grateful for the opportunity to contribute to accessibility efforts on a national scale while gaining invaluable hands-on experience in a humanities career.”

Through her work this summer, Piersall is helping ensure that future generations of researchers can better understand how the world documented and remembered one of the defining events of the 21st century.