Slides for a workshop delivered at the Archives Association of Ontario's 2017 conference in Toronto.

1. Managing Small Archives
Amanda Hill

2. Workshop outline
• Establishing an archives service
• Physical control
• Intellectual control
• Reference services
• Outreach and promotion

3. What are archives?
• Archives are collections of records which have been
selected for permanent preservation because of their
value as evidence or as a source for historical or other
research
• Records are recorded information in any form or
medium, created by the activities of organizations and
people; they serve an active purpose while in current
use and some of them are later selected and preserved
as part of an archival collection
• Archival collections are usually unique. They need to
be carefully stored and managed to protect and preserve
them for current and future use

4. What is an archives?
• An institution dedicated to preserving
archival collections for the long term…
• …and making them available for use
• Can be a building, a room, or even a
closet

5. Establishing an archives service
• High-level issues
CABHC: HS 2-26 (front) Alsace - Panorama of Massereaux valley by
French Pictorial Service, c. 1918

6. Authority
• Archives should be established by an
institution, with a commitment to:
– continuous and regular (but not necessarily
daily) operation and office hours
– appropriate funding levels

7. Mission Statement
• A one-sentence declaration of the role of
the archives for the community it serves
Activity: Write a mission
statement for your archives

8. CABHC mission statement
• The Community Archives provides
professional archives services by
identifying, acquiring, preserving and
promoting access to records documenting
the economic, political, geographic,
cultural, and social development of
Belleville and Hastings County.

9. Mandate
• Archives should have a clear policy on what
they will acquire. An acquisition policy
should:
– State the geographic, subject or institutional basis
for acquisitions
– Avoid competition with other collecting
institutions
– Assist potential donors
– Be shared publicly
• in Ontario, collecting policies can be shared online as
part of an institution’s profile on Archeion (archeion.ca)

10. Activity: Writing an acquisition policy
Handout: Tips and example acquisition
policies
CABHC: 2016-70
Records of the
Women’s Study Guild
of Belleville

11. AAO’s Provincial Acquisition
Strategy for Ontario
1.0 STRATEGY STATEMENT
Ontario archives will acquire archival materials on a
cooperative basis
2.0 STRATEGY OBJECTIVE
The objective of this strategy is to ensure and promote the
cooperative acquisition and preservation of Ontario’s
archival heritage at the local, regional and provincial levels
and to lay the foundation for a provincial documentation
strategy aimed at filling in the gaps in the province’s
documentary memory
Handout: Provincial Acquisition
Strategy

12. Working with a Board/management
• Communicate regularly: keep your Board
up to date with the archives’ activities to
keep their interest
• Be honest: show your Board members
where you need help, they want to know
that they can assist you
Discussion: what would you like to share about
your Board/management experiences?

13. Working with volunteers
• Invaluable for a small archives
– Can achieve amazing things
• Need training and regular supervision
– Can be time-consuming
• Recognition is important
Discussion: questions/observations about
working with volunteers?

14. Budgeting
• Hopefully, you have funding from parent institution
– You can do a lot with very little
– Don’t skimp on preservation materials
– Monitor expenses
• External fundraising
– Have project plans ready for potential funding sources
as they arise
– Make use of Federal/Provincial grants schemes
• Young Canada Works (YCW)
• Documentary Heritage Communities Program (DHCP)

15. Physical control
‘Acrobats, Granville Island, Vancouver, 2006’
https://www.flickr.com/photos/hillbraith/224537433

16. What are the biggest threats to
archival collections?
• Water
• Fire
• Theft
• Animals
• Light
• Handling

17. Avoiding water issues (1)
• If the building is in an area known to be at risk of
flooding, archives should be stored on the second floor
or above. Ideally, they should be relocated to another
building less at risk
• Shelving should be raised off the ground to avoid
damage from minor flooding or leaks
• Roofing, eavestroughs and drains for rainwater should
be in good condition and regularly checked and
maintained to prevent water entering the building
• Water tanks and pipe work inside the building should be
in good condition and regularly checked and maintained
to prevent leaks

18. Avoiding water issues (2)
• Pipe work should not run through storage
areas
• Storage areas should not be directly below
water tanks or pipe work
• Basement storage should be avoided.
Where used, it needs special attention to
prevent flooding. If possible, it should not
be near to storm drains or sewage pipes.
• Never store archives on the floor

19. Fire protection (1)
• Never use open fires, stoves, gas, radiant
electric or paraffin heaters in an archive
building
• Storage areas should have fire-resistant
doors, walls, ceilings, floors and windows
• Most offices have 20-minute fire resistant
doors. The ideal for archives is four-hour
fire resistant doors

20. Fire protection (2)
• Electric wiring circuits should be routed
through metal conduits
• Master switches for electrical circuits
should be outside the storage areas
• Smoke detectors should be fitted inside
and outside the storage areas
• Smoke detectors should link to the
building’s main alarm system and, where
possible, the Fire Department

21. Theft prevention (1)
• Storage must be lockable and kept locked
when not in use
• Access to the storage area must be
controlled and monitored
• If storage areas have to be shared,
archives should be clearly separated and
only handled by people responsible for
their care

22. Theft prevention (2)
• No item should be moved or removed
without the permission of those people
responsible for their care
• If an item is moved or removed, a note must
be left with details of where it is and who has
it
• A register of withdrawals and returns should
be kept
• A separate area for viewing and using the
archives should be set aside if possible
• All areas should be monitored when in use

23. Storage areas (1)
• Shelving should preferably be open metal racking. To
prevent damp it should not be fixed directly to exterior
walls.
• Wooden shelving or cabinets sealed and treated with fire
resistant solvent-free paint or water-based varnish is
acceptable for boxed material or bound volumes
• Wood can give off acetic acid, which causes chemical
damage to archives and can make them deteriorate
faster
• Newer wood usually gives off more acetic acid. Older
wood can give off less, but continues to give off acetic
acid over time

24. Storage areas (2)
• Open shelves allow circulation of air and allow easy
inspection and cleaning. The lowest shelf should be
around 15cm from the floor
• The top of the shelves should be at least 30cm from
overhead lights to prevent heat damage
• Shelving should be open-fronted and easy to access. The
shelves should be large enough to fully support the
archives stored on them
• The shelves should be strong enough to fully support the
weight of the materials placed on them – and the floors
need to be able to support the shelves!

25. Storage areas (3)
• High temperatures and high relative humidity
speed up chemical changes in the materials
archives are made from. This speeds up
degradation
• Relative humidity is the amount of moisture in the
air at particular temperatures - measuring it tells
us how moist the air is in a particular room or area
• Changes in temperature and relative humidity can
also increase degradation of the materials the
archives are made from
• A stable environment where the temperature and
humidity does not change much is best

26. Storage areas (4)
• When relative humidity is above 65%, mould can
germinate and spread through collections causing
extensive damage
• Paper and parchment should not be stored below 40%
relative humidity for long periods of time as it can
become dry and brittle. This increases the risk of
damage through mishandling
• Photographs and film benefit from storage at a lower
relative humidity of 30-35%
• Avoid natural light from outside in your storage area
• Keep lights on for a minimum amount of time, and
only when staff are inside your storage area
• Keep food and drink out of the archives

27. Avoiding light damage (1)
• Store archival materials away from light. Keep them in a
windowless room or cover the windows with heavy black
curtains and blinds.
• Keep the lights off or low whenever possible and reduce
the wattage of bulbs.
• Install ultraviolet filters over fluorescent lighting. These
filters are plastic covers that slip over the fluorescent
tubes, screening out ultraviolet rays.
• Inspect materials regularly, checking for fading or drying.
Closely monitor any items stored in the open or without
proper containers
• Wrap materials in archival tissue and box them in
lightproof containers if they need special protection

28. Avoiding light damage (2)
• Avoid using original items in displays or exhibits. if
possible, replace them with copies, either
photographic reproductions or photocopies
• Packaging is an extra layer of protection for
archives. It should protect the contents from light
and pollution. It also provides some protection from
damage, pests, and changes in light or humidity
• Use archival boxes, folders, sleeves and other
packaging materials wherever possible.
• Archival boxes and packaging are low in acid and
lignin and designed to protect the archives to
professional standards

29. Storing materials
• If you cannot afford archival-quality boxes or
packaging, use clean, lidded cardboard boxes
for temporary storage. Cardboard file storage
boxes or file folders can be used for short-
term storage
• Always label boxes clearly, so that you know
what they contain
• Never over-fill boxes, especially where this
makes them too heavy to handle. This can
cause damage to the contents and is a health
and safety risk to staff

30. Handling archival materials (1)
• Handle archives as little as possible
• Ensure hands are clean and dry
• Examine archives for signs of damage before
making them available
• Use only pencil for taking notes
• Never use adhesive items to mark pages (or
Post-it notes)
• Be careful when moving heavy items, use a
cart and don’t store them on high shelves

31. Handling archival materials (2)
• Never moisten or lick fingers to turn pages
• Never carry heavy, awkward or large items
on your own
• Support documents at all times – large
items need a large table. Bound volumes
need supports such as foam wedges or
pillows so that they don’t open too far
• Use soft, flexible weights to hold pages in
place

32. Handling archival materials (3)
• Photocopying and scanning can cause
damage to documents through exposure
to strong light and closing the lid to flatten
the document
• Scan rather than photocopy, then print
further copies from the digital file
• Document feeder trays on photocopiers
and scanners can damage documents and
should not be used

33. Disaster planning
• Three stages:
1. Planning/prevention
2. Response
3. Recovery
Ambulance at Camp Rathbun, Deseronto
CABHC: HC000074

34. Planning
• Identify possible risks
• Produce a floor plan with location of collections
and emergency equipment (sprinklers, fire
extinguishers etc.)
• Preparing evacuation procedures for staff and
researchers
• Identifying collection priorities for recovery
• Identifying appropriate recovery/salvage
techniques for all collection media
• Developing a contact list of volunteers,
conservators and others with expertise in various
aspects of disaster recovery

35. Disaster Supplies
• Dehumidifier
• Metal cart
• Plastic containers
• Flashlights
• 50-ft. extension cord
(grounded)
• Portable electric fan
• Wet vacuum
• Blank newsprint
• Freezer or wax paper
• Plastic trash bags
• Plastic buckets and trash can
• Paper towels
• Sponges
• Mop
• Monofilament nylon (fishing)
line
• Broom
• Gloves (rubber/leather)
• Rubber boots and aprons
• Safety glasses
• Plastic sheeting (stored with
scissors and tape)
• First aid kit
• Clipboards, paper, pens,
markers

36. Response (1)
• Contact people on contact list
• Enter when safe
• Stop flow of water
• Reduce temperature
• Set up dehumidifiers
• Protect collections with plastic sheeting
• Remove unaffected materials from areas
where they are at risk
• Freeze wet documents, volumes, and
parchment for later freeze drying

37. Response (2)

38. Recovery
• Clean and (if necessary) decontaminate
building
• Replace damaged equipment/furniture
• Clean or repair collections

39. AAO support
• Archives Emergency Response Network
– Coordinated by Archives Advisor
– Regional response groups based around
Chapters
– Voluntary mutual assistance in event of a
disaster

40. Activity: Writing a disaster plan
Handout: Outline of disaster plan
CABHC: 2016-81/4 "Belleville Flood 1936 Front St. "

41. Intellectual control
• Inventories
• Appraisal
• Accessioning
• Arrangement
• Description

42. INVENTORIES

43. Is there an inventory?
• Shelf-by-shelf listing of the contents of the
archive
• If there isn’t one, creating one is a great
way of getting to know what your archives
actually holds
• If there’s a chance you will move your
archives in the future, it is essential!

44. CABHC inventory

45. Before moving

46. APPRAISAL

47. Appraisal
• Is this material worth preserving?
– Always a subjective decision
• Relevance to acquisition policy
• Evidential value
• Quantity
• Uniqueness
• Condition
• Likelihood of use
• Political considerations

48. Monetary appraisal
• Avoid if possible
• Just not feasible for small archives to
administer Canadian Cultural Property
Export Review Board appraisals

49. Selective appraisal
• You don’t have to take everything offered
– Fine to accept only part of a collection
– Or to take a sample of a large set of records
• Sometimes people really only need
permission to throw things out

50. Re-appraisal
• A process of looking back at earlier
accessions and seeing if they are earning
their space on the shelves
• If not, they may be candidates for
deaccessioning:
– Return to donor
– Transfer
– Confidential destruction
– Sale

51. TRANSFER OF OWNERSHIP

52. Transfer of ownership
• Important to document every new
addition to the archives
• May receive records through:
– External donation
– Transfer from parent body
– Loan (temporary or indefinite)

53. Deed of Gift
• For external donations
Discussion: what information do you need to
record in a Deed of Gift?

54. Deed of Gift information
• Donor’s name and contact details
• Archives’ name
• Description of the materials donated
• Statement about transfer of copyright
• De-accessioning statement
• Date of donation
• Signatures of donor and archivist
Handout: CABHC Deed of Gift form

55. Transfers from parent body
Handout: CABHC Transfer form

56. Loans
• Archives used to accept collections on
‘indefinite loans’
• …but not encouraged now…
• Short-term loans for purposes of copying
or exhibit are fine
Handout: CABHC Loan form

57. Using ownership forms
• Complete immediately on receipt of items
• Keep forms in your accessions filing
system
• Give a copy to the donor/transferer/lender
• Write a thank-you letter or email to donor

58. ACCESSIONING

59. Accession Number
• Each new addition to the archives has its
own accession number
– Even if it is an addition to an earlier collection
• Accession numbers usually contain a date
element, e.g.:
– 2017-39
– 017.39

60. Accession Register
• A record of new accessions
Discussion: what information do you need to
record in your Accession Register?

61. Accession register details
• Accession number
• Date of receipt
• Location
• Donor name and address
• Title
• Description
• Extent
• Restrictions

62. Example Accession Register
• The Accession Register logs summary information
about incoming materials and donor’s details
(including contact information)
• This information is not made available to the
public
• Finding aids (more detailed public archival
descriptions) are created from Accession
Register information

63. ARRANGEMENT

64. Why do we arrange and describe
records?
– To know what we’ve got and where it is
– To make materials accessible to potential
users
– To explain the context of the creation and use
of records

65. Arrangement is the intellectual and/or
physical processes of organizing documents in
accordance with accepted archival principles
Description is the creation of an accurate
representation of the archival material by the
process of capturing, collating, analyzing, and
organizing information that serves to identify
archival material and to explain the context and
records systems that produced it.
Rules for Archival Description (revised version, 2008)

66. Archival principles
• Provenance
• Original order
• Ease of use

67. Provenance
• Chain of custody is important for
demonstrating the authenticity of archival
material
• We need to know the context and use of
materials over time in order for them to have
archival integrity
• Materials from one source or creator should
not be mixed with materials from another

68. Provenance
• Chain of custody is important for
demonstrating the authenticity of archival
material
• We need to know the context and use of
materials over time in order for them to have
archival integrity
• Materials from one source or creator should
not be mixed with materials from another
CABHC: DA 2014.01 (1) Unidentified family

69. • Context is crucial to understanding records
• Aim to preserve or recreate the arrangement
of materials to maintain the context of their
creation and use
Original order

70. Respect des fonds
Respect des fonds
Provenance
Original order

71. Definition of a fonds
All of the documents, regardless of
form or medium, naturally generated
and/or accumulated and used by a
particular person, family or corporate
body in the conduct of personal or
corporate activity
International Council on Archives (1992)
’Statement of Principles Regarding Archival Description’
Archivaria 34

72. Acc.
No.
Records received Nature of Receipt
A The minute book of the Guelph Chapter of
the Imperial Order Daughters of the
Empire, dating 1955-1960.
Donated in May, 1980 by Georges
Babineau, who found it in the attic of the
house he purchased.
B 2 m of minutes, correspondence and other
textual records, dating 1966-1975, of the
Galt Chapter of the Imperial Order
Daughters of the Empire.
Donated in May, 1988 by Estelle Trethewey.
She was the last recording secretary of the
chapter, which folded in 1975.
C 212 loose photographs taken by Estelle
Trethewey, dating 1971-1982, showing
events of the Galt Chapter of the IODE,
and also other social and family occasions
in the Galt/Cambridge Area.
Donated in June, 1996 by Johanna
Trethewey, the granddaughter of Estelle
Trethewey.
D A second minute book of the Guelph
Chapter of the Imperial Order Daughters
of the Empire, dating 1960-1966.
Donated in October, 1999 by Marlys
Cabbalie, daughter of the a member of the
Guelph Chapter of the Imperial Order
Daughters of the Empire.
Activity: Identifying fonds in accessions

73. Fonds
• Imperial Order Daughters of the Empire,
Guelph Chapter fonds (Accessions A and
D)
• Imperial Order Daughters of the Empire,
Galt Chapter fonds (Accession B)
• Estelle Trethewey fonds (Accession C)

74. More terminology!
• Fonds are usually subdivided into series
• A series is a group of records within a fonds which are
related to each other in some way
• Series contain files or items

76. Collections
• Materials that were not generated as part of the
activity of a person or organisation
• For example:
– A group of postcards of a local town
– Records relating to a particular subject,
assembled by an individual
• These are not fonds, but collections
• Their provenance and original order may have been lost,
but they can be arranged and described as a discrete
group of records in the same way as a fonds

77. Ease of use
• Think about the end user!

78. STEPS IN ARRANGEMENT

79. 1. Gather background information
• Find out as much as you can about the creator
of the materials you are going to be processing
– Accession records and correspondence
– Internet searches
• Sometimes you may have very little information
on the creator, which makes Step 2 even more
important…

80. 2. Survey the material
• Look through the fonds/collection
• Get a sense of what it contains
• See if there is any obvious original order
• Identify materials which can be disposed of
– Make a note of anything you do discard

81. 3. Physically arrange the material
• Group related materials together
– reflecting original order if that is possible
– bearing the end user in mind
– following any local conventions

82. Example of a
repository with
an arrangement
and numbering
scheme for
certain types of
records

83. Example arrangement
Grantchester
Women’s
Institute records
Minutes
Minute Book,
1966-1969
Minute Book,
1969-1975
Correspondence
Administrative
correspondence
Thank-you
letters
Other materials
Items Files
Series
Fonds

84. Anti-Apartheid Movement papers,
being sorted in Oxford,1997

85. Mike Terry (1947-
2008), executive
secretary of the
Anti-Apartheid
Movement, 1975-
1994
A case of ‘original
disorder’!

86. • (A) Boycott Movement papers, 1959-1961
• (B) AAM Governing Bodies, 1960-1995
• (C) AAM Committees, 1960-1995
• (D) Local Anti-Apartheid Groups, [ca. 1960]-1995
• (E) Professional and Special Interest Groups Against Apartheid, 1970-1994
• (F) Local Authorities Against Apartheid, [ca. 1960]-1995
• (G) Britain, 1959-1995
• (H) South Africa, 1959-1995
• (I) South Africa in Transition, 1986-1995
• (J) Other African Countries, 1961-1995
• (K) Europe, 1972-1995
• (L) Commonwealth, 1960-1994
• (M) Overseas anti-apartheid organisations, 1963-1995
• (N) International Organisations, 1960-1995
• (O) Campaigns, 1956-1995
• (P) AAM Head Office, 1960-1995
• (Q) Correspondence, 1960-1995
• (R) Anti-Apartheid Enterprises (AAE), 1986-1990
• (S) Clapham Common Productions Limited, 1987-1995
• (T) Freedom Productions Limited, 1987-1995
• (U) Action for Southern Africa (ACTSA), 1991-1998
• (V) Photographs and Audio-Visual Material, 1900-[ca. 1999]
• (W) Posters, 1963-[ca. 1999]
• (X) Exhibition Material, Artwork and Objects, [ca. 1960]-[ca. 1999]
• (Y) Printed Material, 1960-1994
• (Z) Miscellaneous Material, [ca. 1960]-[ca. 1999]
http://www.bodley.ox.ac.uk/rhl/aam/aam.html
1,400 boxes of
material, once
catalogued!

87. Limited arrangement

88. Boxes in the Basement
• 89 boxes – materials had already been
used by researchers: box numbers were
known and records could not be re-
arranged
• Had to sort items within each box
– Original boxes were replaced
with archival packaging
– Each box filled around 3 archive boxes

89. Not part of the original order

90. 4. Prepare material for storage
• Package materials in acid-free containers
– Less essential if your storage area is climate-controlled
• Remove rubber bands
• Remove metal fastenings, if this is your
institution’s policy
– This may not always be appropriate, depending on the
bulk of material involved
• Label materials and packaging with reference
numbers

91. Important!
• Bearing in mind the principles of provenance,
original order, and making life easier for users…
– There is no ‘right way’ to arrange materials
– Common sense counts for much!
– Making archives available for use is the key thing

92. Summary
• If it is possible to do so, arrange materials in a
way that reflects the way they were originally
generated and used
• If not, think about the best arrangement from
the point of view of the users of the materials

93. DESCRIPTION

94. Description
• A means of establishing intellectual control over
materials held in archives
– What we have
– Where to find it
• A way of sharing information with potential
users about what our records contain

95. Archival description
• Defined by Canadian Rules for Archival
Description as:
“…the creation of accurate representations
of archival material. Archivists capture,
collate, analyze, and organize information
about material that serves to identify it and
to explain its context and the systems that
produced it.”
Rules for Archival Description (revised version, 2008)

96. Standards for archival description
• No standard way to describe archives until late
20th century
• Then: a flurry of descriptive standards
– In Canada: Rules for Archival Description (RAD) – 1990
(revised 2008)
– Internationally: International Standard for Archival
Description (General) (ISAD(G)) - 1994

97. Series System
• Developed in Australia in 1960s and widely
used by archives of all kinds there
• In Canada it is mainly used to describe
government records such as those held by
the Archives of Ontario

98. Key principles for archival
description
• Describe from the general to the specific
• Arrangement defines description: once
the material is arranged in a logical fashion,
the description should be straightforward
– Start with the fonds or collection level, then
describe each series, with its associated files
or items
• Do not repeat information unnecessarily
• Contain information relevant to the level of
description

99. Grantchester
Women’s
Institute records
Minutes
Minute Book,
1966-1969
Minute Book,
1969-1975
Correspondence
Administrative
correspondence
Thank-you
letters
Other materials
Items Files
Series
Fonds
Arrangement defines description

100. Level of description Contents Reference
number
Fonds Overview of entire fonds 2008.33
Fonds-level description only
Title: Grantchester Women’s Institute
Reference: 2008.33
Dates: 1966-2003
Extent: 133cm
Repository: Smalltown Community Archives
Scope and Content: Minute books, correspondence and other records relating
to Grantchester Women’s Institute.
Administrative History: Grantchester Women’s Institute was organized in
December 1966. It closed in 2003.

101. Level of
description
Contents Possible
number
Fonds Overview of entire fonds 2008.33
Series 1 Description of minute books 2008.33/1
Series 2 Description of
correspondence
2008.33/2
Series 3 Overall description of ‘other
materials’
2008.33/3
A more detailed finding aid

102. Title: Grantchester Women’s Institute
Reference: 2008.33
Dates: 1966-2003
Extent: 133cm
Repository: Smalltown Community Archives
Scope and Content: Minute books, correspondence and other records relating
to Grantchester Women’s Institute.
Administrative History: Grantchester Women’s Institute was organized in
December 1966. It closed in 2003.
2008.33/1
Minute books
1966-1975
The minute books record the activities of the Institute and decisions made by its
committees
2008.33/2
Correspondence
1987-2003
2008.33/3
Other materials

103. Level of description Contents Possible number
Fonds Overview of entire fonds 2008.33
Series 1 Description of minute books 2008.33/1
Item 1 Description of minute book 1 2008.33/1/1
Item 2 Description of minute book 2 2008.33/1/2
Series 2 Description of
correspondence
2008.33/2
File 1 Description of administrative
correspondence
2008.33/2/1
File 2 Description of thank-you
letters
2008.33/2/2
Series 3 Overall description of ‘other
materials’
2008.33/3
Textual layout of detailed finding
aid
In this example, the numbering reflects
the hierarchy of the arrangement.

104. Title: Grantchester Women’s Institute
Reference: 2008.33
Dates: 1966-2003
Extent: 133cm
Repository: Smalltown Community Archives
Scope and Content: Minute books, correspondence and other records relating
to Grantchester Women’s Institute.
Administrative History: Grantchester Women’s Institute was organized in
December 1966. It closed in 2003.
2008.33/1
Minute books
1966-1975
The minute books record the activities of the Institute and decisions made by its
committees
2008.33/1/1
Minute book
1966-1969
2008.33/1/2
Minute book
1969-1975
…

105. What level of description is
appropriate?
• Depends on:
– Nature of the materials
– User demand
– Time and expertise available
• Anything is better than nothing!

106. What should we describe?
Discussion: what information do we need to
record in a fonds/collection-level description?

107. Descriptive standards
• Archival description standards break down
descriptions into a set of key elements
• This helps archivists describe materials in a
consistent way
• …and helps users know what to expect from an
archival description

108. Some core elements of description
Fonds/Collection level
Repository
Title
Name of creator
Dates
Size/extent of materials
Information about creator
Description of materials (scope and content)
Restrictions on access
Reference number
Custodial history of the material
These elements are
common to most
archival descriptive
standards

109. Fonds/Collection level
Repository
Title
Name of creator
Dates
Size/extent of materials
Information about creator
Description of materials (scope and
content)
Collection or fonds level

111. At lower levels of description
Series/File/Item level
Title
Dates
Size
Description of materials

112. Series/File/Item level
Title
Dates
Size/extent of
materials
Description of
materials
Series, file or item level

113. Archival descriptive standards
concentrate on describing fonds
Information
about
records
Information
about
creator(s)
Archival
description

114. The Series System
• For certain types of records, particularly
those of governments, it is easier to
describe records at the level of series,
rather than as a fonds
• The creating body may change frequently
(e.g. with government reorganizations),
while the records continue to be created
according to their original purpose

115. Series System entities
Record
series
First
creator
Second
creator
Third
creator

116. Tools for archival description
• Word-processing
• Spreadsheets or databases
• Dedicated archival software
How do you
plan to
share your
descriptions
with your
users?

117. Some things to look for
• Support for archival description standards
• Ability to publish descriptions online
• Ability to export descriptions to a different
system in future
• Integration with accessioning process

118. In summary
• Descriptions of archives help archivists and
end users:
• Find materials
• Understand how and why they were created
• Using descriptive standards makes
sharing information easier
• Even a very summary description is better
than none!

119. REFERENCE SERVICES

120. Share information
• Make your finding aids available
• Provide regular opening hours
– and stick to them!
– use an appointment system, if necessary
• Welcome new users and assume they are
new to using archives
– listen to their research request
– explain how to use the archives

121. General guidelines
• Have a clean, tidy, space suitable for
consulting archives
• Provide equal access to all
• Supervise archives users (discreetly!)
• Don’t let users into storage areas
unsupervised
• Keep a log of visitors, phone calls, email
queries
– Useful for compiling statistics

122. Visitor log
• Used to be kept as a visitor book in many
archives
– but gathering personal information like
addresses and and having it available to
anyone to read is problematic
• Better to get researchers to fill in
individual forms and keep those

125. Ordering items
• Deseronto: didn’t need order forms
• CABHC: Two-part forms ($44 for 400)

126. Managing queries
• Keep a log
– could be in the form of a journal
– or a register in a spreadsheet

127. Dealing with copies
• Scan, rather than photocopy, if possible
• Create a filing system for scans which
mirrors your physical system

128. Link copies to queries
• Using shortcuts, to save storage space

129. Services
• Decide on your policy relating to use of
cameras in the reading room
• Consider asking people for donations
rather than charging set fees for making
scans/copies

130. Using archives
• Don’t give researchers too much material at
once
• Don’t let food or drink near archival materials
• Insist on the use of pencils
• Provide white gloves for handling
photographs

131. Discussion: do you have any tips or experiences
about reference services to share with the group?

132. OUTREACH AND PROMOTION

133. In-person promotion
• Talks to community groups
• History walks
• Community events
• Doors Open
• Press/radio/local TV

134. Make connections
• Cultivate good relationships with
– PR department of parent body
• be prompt in responding to image requests
– Local media people
• who are generally hungry for content
– Local educational institutions
• good source of volunteers

135. Outreach by pen
• Newsletters
• Blog posts
• Posters/exhibits/displays
• Brochures

136. Visual identity
• Branding matters
• Get a logo and use it everywhere

137. Outreach by pixel
• Some sort of internet presence is essential
• Keep it up to date
• Use free services if you have no budget
– Omeka.net
– Flickr.com
– Wordpress.com

138. Social media
• Twitter and Facebook are great tools for
connecting with users and fellow
professionals

139. Make it easy…
• …for people to find and use your materials
• Digitize as much as possible
• …share images online with permissive
licences when they are out of copyright

140. Deseronto Archives: over 2,000 images on Flickr

141. • Encourages use in exhibitions at other
institutions and in published materials

142. Last thoughts on outreach
• Be bold
• Be generous
• Try not to say ‘no’

143. That’s it!
CABHC: DA 2015.20 Album 1 (10) “R.F.C. Sports Day at
Camp Rathbun”

144. Discussion: any final observations/questions?