CHR Forum

Abstract

Abstract: In this article we explore what the exploding world of humanities and social science research infrastructures might mean for teaching and research in the discipline of history. We focus closely on one example, that of the Canadian Century Research Infrastructure Project (ccri). This interdisciplinary and multi-university project has constructed an infrastructure composed of microdata from the nominal-level Canadian censuses from 1911 through 1951. In addition to compiling information on approximately 2 million individuals, the ccri created a database of contextual data and a gis database. The combination of these three levels makes this infrastructure unique in the world. The ccri can be used in conjunction with Canadian census databases now being constructed or already completed for Canada from 1851 to 2001. As well, the ccri has been constructed in ways that will facilitate cross-national explorations with the United States, the United Kingdom, and several other North Atlantic countries. We suggest that the ccri can best be appreciated when situated within the current proliferation of research infrastructures across the humanities and the social sciences. We argue that these infrastructures are liberating for historians and, collectively, represent new horizons for professional activity. It would be a disservice to themselves, their students, and their profession if historians ignored these expanding horizons.