This document provides an overview of archival arrangement and description. It discusses key principles such as provenance, original order, and respect des fonds. It explains how archivists arrange records into logical groupings like fonds and series. The document also covers descriptive standards like RAD and key elements of archival description at the fonds and series level. The goal of arrangement and description is to provide intellectual control over archival materials and enable access for users.

1. Introduction to
Arrangement and Description
Amanda Hill
Archeion Coordinator

2. Plan for the workshop
• Introductions
• First principles: arrangement
• Practical arrangement exercise
• Archival description
• Practical description exercise
• Descriptive standards
– RAD
• Sharing descriptions through Archeion

3. Overview
• 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

4. 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 (Version 2) 2004

5. Arrangement
• Key archival principles
– Provenance
– Original order
• Another important consideration
– Ease of use by researchers

6. Provenance
• Chain of custody is important for demonstrating the
authenticity of archival material
• Need to maintain the coherence of a group of
materials in order for them to have archival integrity
• Materials from one source should not be mixed with
materials from another
• Respect des fonds (respect for the source)

7. 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

8. Integrity of the fonds
• Context is crucial to understanding records
• Keep materials together to maintain the
context of their creation and use
• N.B. Materials can be physically separated,
if necessary, e.g. for specialist storage

9. Fonds can be big or small
• Records of a long-running business or other organization
can be extensive
• A single fonds may arrive in more than one accession
• One or two items may be all that survive:
“As one archivist has said, what is left of a fonds is a fonds.”1
1 http://aabc.ca/msa/5_describing_archival_material.htm

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

11. 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)

12. Original order
• Aim: to preserve or recreate the order and
organization in which the documents were
created and/or used by the creator or office of
origin
– Think about the functions of records
– Keep related records together

13. Series
• A group of records within a fonds
which are related to each other
by function
• Series may be further divided into
sub-series
• Series may contain files or items

14. STEPS IN ARRANGEMENT

15. 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…

16. 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

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

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

19. 3. Physically arrange the material
• Package materials in acid-free containers
– Less essential if your storage area is climate-controlled
• Remove rubber bands
• Remove metals fastenings, if this is your institution’s
policy
– This may not always be appropriate, depending on the
bulk of material involved

20. Arrangement within a fonds
• Imperial Order Daughters of the Empire,
Guelph Chapter fonds
– Simple, chronological arrangement
• Minute book 1955-1960
• Minute book 1960-1966

21. More complex arrangement
• Imperial Order Daughters of the Empire, Galt
Chapter fonds (Accession 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.
• Minutes
• Correspondence
• Other materials

22. Possible arrangement
Fonds IODE, Galt
Chapter records
Series Minutes Correspondence Other materials
Minute Book, Minute Book, Administrative
Thank-you letters
1966-1969 1969-1975 correspondence
Items Files

23. Very complex arrangement
Anti-Apartheid Movement papers, being sorted in Oxford, ca.1997

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

25. • (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 1,400 boxes of
• (U) Action for Southern Africa (ACTSA), 1991-1998 material, once
• (V) Photographs and Audio-Visual Material, 1900-[ca. 1999] catalogued!
• (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

26. Limited arrangement

27. 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

28. Not part of the original order

29. Important!
• Bearing in mind the principles of original
order, maintaining the integrity of archival
materials and making life easier for users…
• …There is no ‘right way’ to arrange
• Common sense counts for much

30. Hotel sign
(lacking in common sense)

31. 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 described as a discrete
group of records

32. Arrangement: Summary
• Group materials in a way that reflects the
original creator’s order, if it is possible to
determine what that was
• Keep in mind the requirements of end users
• Package materials in archival-quality
wrappings

33. DESCRIPTION

34. 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

35. 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

36. Archival description
• Defined by the International Council on Archives as:
“The creation of an accurate
representation of each fonds and its
component parts by the process of
capturing, collating, analyzing and
organizing any information that serves to
identify archival material, and explain the
context and records systems which
produced it”

37. Key principles for archival description
• Describe from the general to the specific
• Contain information relevant to the unit of
description
• Do not repeat information unnecessarily
• 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

38. Fonds IODE, Galt
Chapter records
Series Minutes Correspondence Other materials
Minute Book, Minute Book, Administrative
Thank-you letters
1966-1969 1969-1975 correspondence
Items Files

39. Textual layout of finding aid
Level of description Contents Possible number
Fonds-level description 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 admin. corresp. 2008.33/2/1
File 2 Description of thank-you letters 2008.33/2/2
Series 3 Overall description of ‘other 2008.33/3
materials’
In this example, the
numbering reflects
the hierarchy of the
description.

40. Alternative finding aid
Level of description Contents Possible number
Fonds-level description 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 2008.33/3
materials’

41. Alternative finding aid
Level of description Contents Reference number
Fonds-level description Overview of entire fonds 2008.33

42. Some core elements of description
Fonds/Collection level Series/File/Item level
Repository
Title Title
Name of creator
Dates Dates
Size Size
Information about creator
Description of materials Description of materials
Restrictions on access
Reference number Reference number
Custodial history of the material
These elements are
common to most
archival descriptive
standards.

43. Descriptive standards
• RAD and other 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

44. RAD concentrates on describing
fonds
Information
about
Archival creator(s)
description
Information
about
records

45. 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

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

47. 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

48. Rules for Archival Description
• First edition published in 1990
• Last updated in 2008
• Based on the Anglo-American Cataloguing
Rules (AACR2, a library standard)
• Maintained by the Canadian Committee on
Archival Description, a committee of the
Canadian Council of Archives

49. RAD Principles
• P1.0 Archival description should be
undertaken with attention to requirements for
use
• P2.0 The description of all archival material
(e.g. fonds, series, collections and discrete
items) should be integrated and proceed from
a common set of rules

50. RAD Principles
• P3.0 Respect des fonds is the basis of archival
arrangement and description
• P4.0 Creators of archival material must be
described
• P5.0 Description reflects arrangement

51. RAD Principles
• P5.1 Levels of arrangement and description
constitute a hierarchical system
• P5.2 Descriptions should proceed from
general to specific
• P5.3 Information provided at each level of
description must be appropriate to that level
• P5.4 Relationships between levels of
description must be clearly indicated

52. RAD areas
1. Title
2. Edition
3. Class of material specific details
4. Dates of creation
5. Physical description
6. Series area
7. Archival description
8. Notes
9. Standard number

53. Important RAD areas
1. Title
2. Edition
3. Class of material specific details
4. Dates of creation
5. Physical description
6. Series area
7. Archival description
8. Notes
9. Standard number

54. Title Area
• 1.1B3 Title proper
• Enter the name of the person, family, or
corporate body responsible for the creation of
the records, followed by the word fonds. If the
unit being described is an artificially
accumulated collection, use the word
collection instead of fonds

55. Examples
• Anthony Adamson and Marion MacRae fonds
• Frederick Hagan fonds
• Kingston General Hospital photograph
collection
• Proctor family fonds

56. Dates of creation
• 1.4B Date
• Give the date(s) of creation of the unit being
described either as a single date, or range of
dates (for inclusive dates and/or predominant
dates). Always give the inclusive dates. When
providing predominant dates, specify them as
such, preceded by the word predominant.
• If there is no date, provide an estimated date in
square brackets. Do not use ‘n.d.’ or ‘undated’

57. Examples
• 1890
• 1934-1955
• [ca. 1875]-1954
• 1812-1903, predominant 1845-1867

58. Uncertain/probable dates
[1867?] probable date
[ca. 1867] approximate date
[before 1867] terminal date
[after 5 Jan. 1867] terminal date
[1892 or 1893] one year or the other
[between 1915 and use only for dates fewer
1918] than 20 years apart
[197-] decade certain
[186-?] probable decade
[17–] century certain
[17–?] probable century

59. Physical description area
• 1.5B
• At all levels of description, record the extent of
the unit being described by giving the number of
physical units and their nature
• Record all the different types of materials found,
starting each on a new line
• Use metric measurements

60. Examples
• ca. 200 photographs
• 50 maps
• 21cm of textual records
• 102 posters : silkscreen ; 60 x 90 cm, 40 x 60
cm and smaller

61. Archival description area
• 1.7
• This area contains the core of your archival
description, including information on the
creator(s) of the material and the nature of
the material itself

62. Administrative history/Biographical
sketch
• 1.7B
• Record in narrative form or as a chronology the
main life events, activities, achievements and/or
roles of the entity being described. This may
include information on gender, nationality, family
and religious or political affiliations. Wherever
possible, supply dates as an integral component
of the narrative description.

63. For organizations include:
• Dates of founding and/or dissolution
• Mandate/sphere of responsibility
• Predecessor and successor bodies
• Administrative relationships with other bodies
• Administrative structure
• Names of the chief officers
• Other significant information

64. For individuals, include:
• Place and dates of birth and death
• Place(s) of residence
• Occupation, education and activities
• Names of family members

65. Custodial history
• 1.7C
• Use this field to record the changes of
ownership of the archival materials, if known,
since their creation
• If the records were received directly from their
creator, record this information under
‘Immediate source of acquisition’ (1.8B12)

66. Scope and content
• 1.7D
• Give information about the functions and/or
kinds of activities generating the records, the
period of time, the subject matter, and the
geographical area to which they relate
• Summarize the arrangement and structure of
the records and the form that they take

67. Examples
• Fonds consists of Anthony Richmond's records pertaining
to his career as a scholar and includes his research files,
professional files, manuscripts, as well as his personal
files.
• The collection consists of records of various private
businesses which operated in Hastings County, Ontario,
which were gathered as a unit by the Hastings County
Historical Society. Various kinds of activities and
occupations are represented: collection of duties; public
utilities; loan; general merchants; grocery; temperance;
insurance; engineering; surveying; railway…

68. Notes area

69. Physical condition
• 1.8B9a
• Note anything about the physical condition of the
material being described that affects the clarity
or legibility of the records
• Also consider noting if the material has suffered
mould damage, even if it does not affect the
legibility of the records, as a warning to potential
users.

70. Immediate source of acquisition
• 1.8B12
• Enter information about the donor from
whom you obtained the records
• Only information about the holder of the
record immediately prior to their transfer to
the archives should be recorded in this field

71. Restrictions on access
• 1.8B16a
• Enter information about any applicable
restrictions on researchers' ability to view the
material

72. Examples
• Open
• Access restrictions apply to Series 5,
Restricted Originals.
• Several files and photographs within the
collection have restricted access due to the
information they contain. Access to brittle
documents may be restricted.

73. Access points
• Act as index terms for your description
• Usually in a standardized form (e.g. names)
– Or taken from a predetermined list of terms (e.g.
places, subjects)

74. Forming names in RAD (Section 22)
• Surname comes first
– Fisher, John
• Names used by person form the heading,
other names explained in brackets
– Macdonald, H. Ian (Hugh Ian)
• RAD goes into detail about how to form name
headings for more complex examples

75. MANAGERIAL CONSIDERATIONS
RELATING TO ARCHIVAL DESCRIPTION

76. Need to think about…
• User demand
• Time available
• Overall control of several groups vs. detailed
description of one group of records
• Recording your actions
• MPLP: More Product Less Process

77. MPLP
“There is sometimes an unfortunate tendency
on the part of processing archivists to use the
preparation of [finding aids] as an excuse to
demonstrate their own knowledge (of both
collection and historical context) and writing
ability.”
• Greene, Mark A. & Dennis Meissner (2005) ‘More Product, Less Process:
Revamping Traditional Archival Processing’ American Archivist 68: 208–
263

78. MPLP
“The archivist’s job is simply to represent the
materials sufficient to affording acceptable
access. Let’s not waste either our own valuable
time researching and writing lengthy
narratives, or our researchers’ time in forcing
them to read more verbiage than necessary.”
• Greene, Mark A. & Dennis Meissner (2005) ‘More Product, Less Process:
Revamping Traditional Archival Processing’ American Archivist 68: 208–
263

79. ARCHEION

80. Archeion
• Ontario’s archive information network
• Established in 1999
• Major upgrade in 2011 with a move of all
existing information to ICA-AtoM software
• Holds over 8,000 fonds- and collection-level
descriptions from more than 70 institutions
across Ontario
• One of a network of provincial systems
feeding in to ArchivesCanada

81. Archeion’s structure
Archival institutions
Online display
Archival descriptions Record creators

82. Standards-based records
• ISDIAH – International
Standard for Describing Archival institutions
Institutions with Archival
Holdings
• RAD – Rules for Archival Archival descriptions
Description
• ISAAR-CPF – International
Standard for Archival
Authority Records - Record creators
Corporate, Personal, Family

87. Some tips for Archeion
descriptions
• Be concise
• Put key information at the start of longer text
fields, particularly:
– Biographical/administrative history
– Scope and content
• Remember you are writing for a global
audience (context!)
– The reader is (probably) not in your reading room

88. Remember
In your first sentence… world-wide
context…
• Include the name, birth and death dates, major
occupation, and geographical area of the
creator(s) in the biographical sketch/
administrative history.
– Adam Lindsay Webb (b. 1879) was a physician who
practised in Brighton, Ontario.
• Give a single sentence overview in the scope and
content note.
– Fonds consists of photocopies of records created and
received by A.L. Webb, primarily relating to his
medical practice.

89. If in doubt…
a) Check the Archeion manual
b) See how other archivists have described similar
materials on Archeion already and use their
descriptions and access points as a model
c) Consult RAD
d) Contact the Archeion Coordinator if you get
completely stuck!

90. Coordinator contact details
• Amanda Hill
• archeion@aao-archivists.ca
• 416-929-4447