Archival Arrangement, Description & Access DLOC - Training Session Summer 2013 By Natalie Baur & Béatrice Skokan University of Miami Otto G. Richter Library
Definition Archives are the noncurrent records of an organization or an individual preserved because of their enduring value Source: Developing & Maintaining Practical Archives: A How-To-Do- It Manual by Gregory Hunter
Examples of Archival Material Letters (handwritten, typed & email) Photographs Minutes/Reports Diaries Business records Speeches/Lectures Brochures/Flyers/Posters Film/Video/Audio tapes Photograph of Juan Trippe and Charles Lindberg Pan American World Airways Records, Inc., UM Special Collection.
Preservation Basics Climate control Lower than 70 degrees Fahrenheit 45% Relative Humidity (low 30% & high 50%) FLUCTUATIONS in Temperature & Relative Humidity are especially harmful by causing materials to expand & contract repeatedly. Light is damaging to rare materials Eliminate UV light & sunlight Use lighting as needed Acid free containers Advanced preservation issues are referred to professional conservators. Source: Northeast Document Conservation Center @ http://www.nedcc.org/home.php
Steps for Archival Processing Arrangement Description Publication of the Finding Aid
Archival Description Standard - DACS
DACS Collection Level Description Fields Collection no. Repository Collection Title Collection Dates Extent (in linear or cubic ft.) Creator(s) Scope & Content Note Access Restrictions Language of Materials Location (Not required by DACS but used to manage collections)
Published Finding Aid Example
What is More Product Less Process (MPLP)? An archival method of arranging & describing archival collection in the least amount of time in order to provide quicker access to researchers. Source : Mark Green and Dennis Meisner, More Product, Less Process: Revamping Traditional Archival Processing, American Archivist 68:2 (2005)
Why Adopt the MPLP Methodology? Processing backlogs continue to be a problem for archivists, and yet the problem is exacerbated by many of the traditional approaches to processing collections that archivists continue to practice. Mark Green and Dennis Meisner, More Product, Less Process: Revamping Traditional Archival Processing, American Archivist 68:2 (2005), 208-64.
Green & Meisner Survey Results Researchers accept minimal processing of archival collections. Researchers want basic descriptions of archival collections regardless of level of processing. Most researchers want online descriptions of archival collections. African Slave Trade. Hand-written Portledge Bill of Brigantine "Reynard", Peter Dordin (slave captain) Master from Africa. Caribbean Documents Collection, UM Special Collections.
MPLP Principles for Change The Golden Minimum Accept Original Order & Focus on Intellectual Arrangement Rely on Environmental Controls for Preservation of Materials Maximize Access to Collections Unprocessed Collections are Open to Researchers
MPLP Method - First Steps 1. Inventory your collections (for intellectual control of your holdings). 2. For each collection in the inventory include the basic DACS fields : Collection no, Title, Dates etc.. (See slide 7) 3. Give a physical location such as room and shelf no. to each collection (for physical control of your holdings
Archival Management Systems Archon University of Miami archival management system Creation of finding aids EAD/XML output Accession records Easy creation/updating of records Will move to ArchivesSpace in Fall 2013 http://www.archon.org http://www.archivesspace.org Natalie Baur & Beatrice Skokan, 5/23/2012
Digitization and Archival Context and Description Digitization as process Role of archival context and description Provenance Creators Intellectual and physical arrangement
Provenance Definition: Origin/source of material. Information regarding the origins, custody, and ownership of an item or collection. (A Glossary of Archival & Records Terminology, 2005) Provenance is the fundamental principal of archives. Respect des fonds: Records of different origins are kept separately Digital collections must also respect provenance 5/23/2012
Creators Definition: individual, group or organization that is responsible for something s production, accumulation or formation. (A Glossary of Archival & Records Terminology, 2005) Natalie Baur & Beatrice Skokan, 5/23/2012
Intellectual and Physical Arrangement Finding Aid Provides information on intellectual arrangement of collection Series, Subseries Provides physical access to intellectual arrangement found in the finding aid Box, folder, item Digital collections must also respect physical and intellectual arrangement 5/23/2012
Intellectual and Physical Arrangement 5/23/2012
Archival Context in Digital Collections 5/23/2012
Archival Context in Digital Collections 5/23/2012
Archival Context in Digital Collections 5/23/2012
View this presentation on Slide Share: http://www.slideshare.net/lindyhopper38/archival-arrangement-descriptionaccess-dloc-training-summer-2013-24514480 International Council on Archives Standards for Archival Description: http://www.ica.org/10207/standards/isadg-general-international-standardarchival-description-second-edition.html DACS available via free PDF download from Society of American Archivists: http://files.archivists.org/pubs/dacs2e-2013.pdf Thank You Archives Arrangement, Description & Access Natalie Baur (Archivist) & Béatrice Skokan (Manuscripts Librarian) July 17, 2013