Mary Jo Pugh Named Editor of "American Archivist"

October 2005

CHICAGO—The Society of American Archivists (SAA) is pleased to announce that Mary Jo Pugh has been named Editor of the American Archivist, effective January 1, 2006. Published since 1938, this semi-annual journal is the premier scholarly periodical for archivists and, with more than 4,900 subscribers, enjoys the largest circulation of any English-language archival journal. Pugh will succeed Philip B. Eppard, who is stepping down after 10 years in the post.

“SAA is delighted that Mary Jo Pugh has accepted a three-year term as journal editor,” said SAA President Richard Pearce-Moses. “She brings to the position a special talent for both appreciating archival theory and understanding the practicalities of what archivists do. Her ideas for continued development of our flagship publication are both ambitious and exciting!”

Pugh has earned distinction as a practicing reference archivist, editor, author, teacher, and SAA leader. Named a Fellow of SAA in 1992, she has published widely in the professional literature. Her influential ideas on reference and access are embodied in the newly published volume in the Archival Fundamentals Series II, Providing Reference Services for Archives and Manuscripts (SAA, July 2005). She contributed the first edition of that title to the original Archival Fundamentals Series (for which she also edited three additional volumes). Her seminal article on reference, “The Illusion of Omniscience: Subject Access and the Reference Archivist,” received SAA’s 1983 Fellows’ Ernst Posner Award.

“I am honored to be selected as editor of the American Archivist and eager to facilitate discussion of the exciting trends and issues in archival theory and practice with readers in all settings and stages of learning,” said Pugh, who holds a BA in history, with honors, from the University of Chicago, and both an MA in American history and MLS from the University of Michigan. She began her career as reference archivist at the Michigan Historical Collections, Bentley Historical Library, University of Michigan. After moving to California, she served as a consulting archivist with organizations such as the Smithsonian Institution, the Eugene O’Neill Foundation, and Bank of America. She is currently supervisory archivist of the Historic Documents Department at San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park. She also taught archival administration at the University of Michigan, the University of California Berkeley, Emporia State University (Denver campus), and the Western Archives Institute.

Pugh has served SAA in a variety of leadership capacities, including on the governing Council and committees. She served on the board of regents of the Academy of Certified Archivists and has contributed to both the Society of California Archivists and the Michigan Archival Association, of which she served as president and newsletter editor. She has been a reviewer for the National Endowment for the Humanities and the National Historical Publications and Records Commission for many years.