Happy Ask an Archivist Day!
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This week my homework for my Foundations of Library and Information Science class led me to the Society of American Archivists website where I learned that October 30th is Ask an Archivist Day.
That means that archivists from around the world (mostly U.S., but I got responses from one person in Canada and another in Ireland) were on Twitter answering questions tagged with #AskAnArchivist. I asked six questions and received a number of thoughtful and helpful responses to each.
I've included my questions and the archivists' answers below. Though I asked six questions, I've only included the ones that would be of most interest to my readers. I've also included links to each question in my Twitter feed in case you want to engage with me or check out the links people tweeted me.
Here's my first question:
#AskAnArchivist What can the average person do to preserve old family letters, scrapbooks, etc.? What materials are needed & where to buy?
— Mandy Shunnarah (@fixedbaroque) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Great question! First thing I say to family and friends...please don't store in basement! Limit humidity/temp change and light
— Lisa Snider (@archivesmatter) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Acid-free folders and boxes, if you can! Pack the folders and boxes fairly tightly to prevent bending 1/2 #AskAnArchivist
— Erin Platte (@Eireann_Platte) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Keep treasures where temp. & Rh are constant, like a closet in main part of house (not attic or basement). Use acid-free boxes
— YellowstoneNPS (@YellowstoneNPS) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Get them into acid-free folders and boxes, then keep them in a stable environment. That's the very least you can do.
— Historic Newton (@HistoricNewton) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Our materials come from @GaylordBros. Also, I 2nd @archivesmatter. Get them out of the basement or attic! 2/2 #AskAnArchivist
— Erin Platte (@Eireann_Platte) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Hollinger Metal Edge is a company I use. Also chk w/ local archives- may be able 2 sell u 1/2 boxes at a time #AskAnArchivist
— Sasha Griffin (@griffingate) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque #AskAnArchivist Acid free paper & boxes should be used for storage & low temps & humidity & no sunlight are important.
— ArkHistCom (@ArkHistCom) October 30, 2014.@fixedbaroque For a detailed answer, see this great article on preserving physical materials: http://t.co/gvk4FI2iyL #AskAnArchivist
— Roesch Library (@roeschlibrary) October 30, 2014.@fixedbaroque For digital photos, documents, etc., you might start here: http://t.co/gq9jmDoJtQ #AskAnArchivist
— Roesch Library (@roeschlibrary) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Also, it's good to keep the materials in a temperature controlled environment
— U of A Libraries (@UARKLibraries) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Karen says: Environment is key! Store in interior closet/ under your bed and in acid free material. http://t.co/EZsX9wf4sv
— Nebraska History (@NebraskaHistory) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Good resources at http://t.co/1fwyAPh0sf and http://t.co/khWtreibWL
— NY State Archives (@nysarchives) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Mandy, check out our Resources section http://t.co/PcUboTOyRL and our free Guide to Collections Care for some basic tips!
— Gaylord Bros. (@GaylordBros) October 30, 2014I was actually inspired to ask this question since my roommate and I found a box of love letters from 1913 on one of our dumpster diving excursions. I wish I were joking, but at least they're now safely in my care.
And my next question:
#AskAnArchivist For organizations that don't have institutional archives, what do you say to garner support for starting one?
— Mandy Shunnarah (@fixedbaroque) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque What kind of org? Private, public, for-profit, non-profit? #AskAnArchivist
— Rachel Donahue (@sheepeeh) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque I would appeal to their vanity, it's a great way to showcase how awesome an org is/has been. #AskAnArchivist
— Jenny O (@JenbearDublin) October 30, 2014@sheepeeh I guess I was thinking nonprofit, like a museum, but I'm open to hearing about others as well.
— Mandy Shunnarah (@fixedbaroque) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque I think the place to start is to gather evidence of how similar organizations benefit from their archiv(es/ists).
— Rachel Donahue (@sheepeeh) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Also, peer pressure. Don't most museums already have an archives? ;)
— Rachel Donahue (@sheepeeh) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque When in that position before, I listened to org's vision + told them how archivist could help w/each aspect. #AskAnArchivist
— Sami Norling (@SamiNorling) October 30, 2014I recently interviewed a librarian at a well established museum (post to come soon) who recently took the position and one of her goals as the new librarian is to set up an institutional archive--an archive with information about the museum itself, not just its contents, which could include records of major donors, member newsletters, publications written by the curatorial staff, and more.
And my next question:
#AskAnArchivist What are your thoughts on digital archives? The way of the future or not a viable option?
— Mandy Shunnarah (@fixedbaroque) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Since I am a digital archivist I am biased! Future and present, all the way...In 5 yrs, it will be fully mainstream
— Lisa Snider (@archivesmatter) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Way of the future. It's inevitable. (This is a personal opinion, though, and doesn't represent the opinions of others).
— ArkHistCom (@ArkHistCom) October 30, 2014@archivesmatter @fixedbaroque Floppy discs have proven to be a wonderful way to backup data and I'm excited about their future.
— Evil Archivist (@EvilArchivist) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Already inescapable. Many collections are "hybrid," i.e. contain traditional & dig. materials.
— Lauren G. (@laurenbgood) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Most records people make (correspondence, schoolwork, newspapers, etc) are now digital, so it's the future for sure!
— Am Lib Assn Archives (@ALA_Archives) October 30, 2014@EvilArchivist @fixedbaroque I really did LOL...Hey the US govt still uses them!
http://t.co/fEhw5qJz9Q
— Lisa Snider (@archivesmatter) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Important to consider with digital archives is digital preservation. How do we preserve digital objects? #AskAnArchivist
— Jenny O (@JenbearDublin) October 30, 2014@JenbearDublin @fixedbaroque some in the field talk about "digital curation" vs. preservation (1/n) http://t.co/kK53XbGwX8 #AskAnArchivist
— MA HistoricalSociety (@MHS1791) October 30, 2014@JenbearDublin @fixedbaroque because digital works are rarely fixed, constantly migrating, changing; we must monitor changes #AskAnArchivist
— MA HistoricalSociety (@MHS1791) October 30, 2014@MHS1791 @JenbearDublin Interesting! I'm early in MLIS on the digital preservation track & we haven't discussed much digital curation yet.
— Mandy Shunnarah (@fixedbaroque) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque @JenbearDublin I definitely rec work from Canada, UK & Australia on digital archives; lots of great models! #AskAnArchivist
— MA HistoricalSociety (@MHS1791) October 30, 2014I was glad to hear of several people already working with digital or hybrid (both digital and physical) archives because I plan to go into digital preservation. Sounds like it's the way of the future to me!
And my next question:
#AskAnArchivist How do you decide which collections to digitize? Is it based on popularity, durability of items, or something else?
— Mandy Shunnarah (@fixedbaroque) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Depends. Format 1st- is it obsolete/nearly so? Do we have playback equip? Obsolete media is most endangered #AskAnArchivist 1
— Barona Museum (@BaronaMuseum) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque 2nd- state of media? damaged? broken? digitize ASAP. #AskAnArchivist 2
— Barona Museum (@BaronaMuseum) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Content is really 1st, but in my archive everything is cultural heritage material, so it all has importance #AskAnArchivist 3
— Barona Museum (@BaronaMuseum) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Mainly popularity/durability. Sometimes to highlight Col. Pres. Digitization is a luxury we can't afford. #AskAnArchivist
— Death Orange (@AnAnarchivist) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Obsolescence & durability. If it's falling apart or about to be inaccessible, it's on the top of the priority list.
— Rebecca (@8BitBecca) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Use and uniqueness of records is crucial for digitization. Archives exist for access @muddlibrary #AskAnArchivist
— Rossy Mendez (@theroselibrary) October 31, 2014I asked this question a bit late in the day, so I'll update this post if I get more responses.
And my last (and most fun) question:
#AskAnArchivist What's the most popular item in your collection?
— Mandy Shunnarah (@fixedbaroque) October 30, 2014.@fixedbaroque FDR's 1936 Ford Phaeton car with hand controls on display in our galleries. http://t.co/fI3wsm7qYT #AskAnArchivist
— FDR Library (@FDRLibrary) October 30, 2014@FDRLibrary That is SWEET. And that's the original car? Looks like y'all have taken spectacular care of it!
— Mandy Shunnarah (@fixedbaroque) October 30, 2014.@fixedbaroque Most popular: Records that mention Peel’s Aboriginal people, the Mississaugas. ^da #AskAnArchivist pic.twitter.com/gFiDlZueA6
— PAMA (@visitpama) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque I don't do much ref work, but I hear our Agent Orange materials are pretty popular. http://t.co/9332wnlsJw #AskAnArchivist
— Rachel Donahue (@sheepeeh) October 30, 2014.@fixedbaroque Yep, it's the real deal! Mrs. Roosevelt gave it to the Library to guarantee its preservation. #AskAnArchivist
— FDR Library (@FDRLibrary) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Records of ALA's work in WWI have been very popular this year as it's the centennial Lots digitized: http://t.co/LjEHnQ90HT
— Am Lib Assn Archives (@ALA_Archives) October 30, 2014@visitpama Interesting! Funnily enough, my boyfriend and I were wondering about the various indigenous peoples of Canada just yesterday.
— Mandy Shunnarah (@fixedbaroque) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque The Mississaugas were relocated by the gov. to inhospitable land, thankfully another nation invited them to share their land.
— PAMA (@visitpama) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Flushing Remonstrance,1657, petition by citizens of Flushing, Queens in favor of relig. toleration frm the Dutch colony’s gov.
— NY State Archives (@nysarchives) October 30, 2014@fixedbaroque Definitely Alexander Girard's textile board for Miller House! #AskAnArchivist http://t.co/exe0aKBKmW pic.twitter.com/teWYimFERZ
— Sami Norling (@SamiNorling) October 30, 2014@SamiNorling That's really cool! I like that the samples of fabric are attached to the design plan. That's not something you see too often.
— Mandy Shunnarah (@fixedbaroque) October 30, 2014
