By CLAYTON PARK

Gloria Butts and members of the Broadview Historical Society are racing against time.

For nearly a decade now, the volunteer group, which is headed by Butts, has been involved in recording oral histories of longtime local residents in an effort to compile a comprehensive history of the Broadview community.

The problem is, the number of oldtimers continues to dwindle with the passing of each year.

That means there are fewer and fewer people left who can describe, from first-hand experience, what it was like to live in the Broadview area in the early part of the 20th Century.

And, because Broadview, which didn't become part of the City of Seattle until 1954, was considered rural for so many years, there is scant written information available about the community's early years.

Butts recalls attending a program at the Broadview Library about 10 years ago where a noted local historian gave a slide show, presumably about Broadview history. "There was only one slide about our area," she said. "The rest of the slides were about Ballard."

The next day, 25 people turned out to attend a meeting organized by Butts (who at the time was president of the Broadview Community Council) to discuss starting a neighborhood history project.

That meeting led to the formation of what is now known as the Broadview Historical Society. Over the years, the group has recorded hundreds of hours of oral history interviews, both audio and video tapes.

"We also have audiotapes for every meeting, but nobody wants to transcribe them," said Butts, who adds that the all-volunteer group would like to be able to hire someone to transcribe the tapes, but doesn't have the money to do so at the present time.

The goal is to eventually publish a series of books, complete with text and photos, but to do that the group needs to either raise donations or obtain a grant - or perhaps do both. Butts said the group is planning to apply for non-profit status.

The group also needs more volunteers - both to do research work and conduct oral history interviews, as well as participation from oldtimers and/or people willing to share historical photos or information.

The Broadview Historical Society meets on the third Thursday of every month (except July, August and December), beginning at 12:30 p.m., at the Broadview Library, 12755 Greenwood Ave. N. The meetings are free and open to everyone. The next meeting will be held on Sept. 16.

For more information, call the library at 684-7519 or Gloria Butts, coordinator, at 365-7295.