Buckhorn Archives Accelerator

The Bicentennial Celebrations of 1976 led me to a lifelong interest in the Eighteenth Century, and a search for the hidden figures and untold stories —  including that of my Black and Native American ancestors in rural North Carolina and Florida.

I tried to uncover their story while completing degrees at elite universities – an undergraduate degree in History from Harvard University, Masters Degree in Cultural Anthropology from Duke University, law degree from University of North Carolina, and a Masters in Library Science from Florida State University. I did not find them there, but I gained the skills that I use as a librarian and lawyer.  

I eventually found them by looking at the archives differently, and by using the digital tools that did not exist back in 1976. I found four centuries of direct ancestors, and the stories of Black and Native American women who used the law to fight for freedom. 

1. Cowford Copyright Consulting

Policy, infrastructure, and compliance auditing for institutional repositories, libraries, historical societies, and university administrators.

• Custom Legal Tools: Drafting MOAs, gift agreements, and licensing frameworks tailored to your collection.

• Federal Mandate Compliance: Expert risk navigation for Section 108, the Music Modernization Act (MMA), and NAGPRA.

• Strategic Thought Partnership: Executive consulting and grant review to align institutional funding with compliant archival workflows.

• [Engage Cowford Consulting] (Links to institutional intake form)

2. The Personal Librarian

Private "Personal Librarian" consulting for individual donors, foundations, and advancement leaders.

• Legacy Preservation: Elite curation, legal stewardship, and organization of high-value personal collections.

• Resource Maximization: Leveraging deep institutional fund leadership experience to guarantee transformative archival outcomes for future generations.

• [Partner With Me] (Links to private consultation booking calendar)
  
  

3. The Jane Gibson Evans Project

Our flagship historical archive and community data sovereignty initiative.

• The Focus: A living model demonstrating how complex legal standards, oral history workflows, and lineage tracking protect everyday people as primary co-creators of public memory.

• Access: Participation in the JGE Project is by invitation only.

[Learn About the JGE Project](Links to the restricted project gallery/case study hub)

SERVICES INDEX

A comprehensive look at the specific capabilities we bring to individuals, organizations, and institutions:

• Individual Archiving Services

• Advising Institutions and Organizations

• NAGPRA Advisory Services

• Policy Drafting

• Donor and Gift Agreements

• Author Agreements

• Oral History

• Limited legal services are available separately on a pro bono basis - inquire for details.