MFG Posted July 9, 2012 Share Posted July 9, 2012 Well, this is my first thread, so here goes... I volunteer as an archivist for our small, local historical society. We run on a shoestring budget so training and materials are limited. I feel reasonably comfortable cataloging new collections, but am at a loss in organizing and preserving both new and existing materials. I noticed a professional archivist answered in the family archive thread. I was wondering if she, or anyone else, had suggestions for either online or printed resources on the "how-to" of working in an archive. Any information would be greatly appreciated! I will be out the rest of this morning but will check back later in the day. Thanks for any and all suggestions! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susan in KY Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 Bumping for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LostSurprise Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 Maybe if you were a little more specific? I'm afraid even basic information on running an archive takes 6-7 specific classes from a library science degree and hands-on experience. I'm not sure there's really a website which can tell you what to do. What specific things would you like to learn? Also, there are classes given by the SAA (check out continuing education on the SAA website-- http://www2.archivists.org/ ), some of which are intro. classes. (BTW, I'm not an archivist but I'm taking archive classes for my LIS degree.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MFG Posted July 10, 2012 Author Share Posted July 10, 2012 I suppose the size of the undertaking explains my confusion! It seems such a huge task I am unsure where to begin. I think one of the best tools would be an understanding of organizational principles. In the case of a small, limited resource archive, what would be the best tasks to accomplish with the given time and resources? What is the most effective way to insure that materials are both conserved but also accessible as needed? Which tasks have priority and which are more optional? If these questions seem vague, it is because I am still grouping to get a handle on the whole process. Thanks for any help available! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LostSurprise Posted July 11, 2012 Share Posted July 11, 2012 I think a lot depends on who your 'customer' is. Who uses the archive? What are they looking for? Is there a local connection? For what purpose was most of the information saved? What's expensive or hard to do? I would schedule around that first. Make a list of what people want to see, what's important to the goal of the archive, and what's less expensive to process. Then start there. Check out that link I left in the last post. The Society of American Archivists has educational classes (a few hundred dollars) and also books on archival principles. I would see if the budget has enough for you to attend an introductory class or at least buy some books on archival theory. That might help you feel more confident about starting. Cheaper solution: contact your state archive organization (you might find a link to it on the SAA website or do a Google search). Ask them what kind of information or training is available to your as a volunteer archivist. Ask if you can borrow books. Find out when your state conference is held. Call a large archive run by professional archivists. Ask for a tour or an interview. Ask questions about how they do things. Most archivists are very giving people interested in history or education. They certainly don't get into the field because they care about the money. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MFG Posted July 11, 2012 Author Share Posted July 11, 2012 Thank you so much for the information. The link you provided was very helpful. I will investigate various training options and plot a future course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathryn Posted July 11, 2012 Share Posted July 11, 2012 (edited) As pp noted, the SAA is a good source of information. You could contact them to find out about any sort of continuing education courses near you or even someone willing to do a mentoring workshop with you. I agree with all of what she said. First and foremost, you need to know your mission. What is the point of your collection? Then, what do you have? Who are your patrons? What needs doing? What's the budget? How can you prioritize? You need to look at storage, organization, description, access, climate control, and security. A few texts that I found worth keeping: http://www.amazon.com/Arranging-Describing-Archives-Manuscripts-Fundamentals/dp/193166613X/ http://www.amazon.com/Developing-Maintaining-Practical-Archives--Do-It/dp/1555704670/ http://www.amazon.com/Keeping-Archives-Judith-Ellis/dp/1875589155/ Edited July 11, 2012 by kebg11 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MFG Posted July 12, 2012 Author Share Posted July 12, 2012 Thanks for the information! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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