A Brief Introduction to Archives
by Uofl Archives and Special Collection
Archive
- Refers to a physical space where materials are stored
- Or a Collection of specific materials regarding a specific theme or purpose
- Organized by Archivists, who deal with 2 types of sources:
- Primary Source
- Immediate 1st Hand account from someone with a direct connection to the Artifact
- Letters, Diaries, Photographs, Speeches, Original Researches, Artworks, Oral Histories, etc.
- Immediate 1st Hand account from someone with a direct connection to the Artifact
- Secondary Source
- One step removed, with a layer of Interpretation and Analysis
- One step removed, with a layer of Interpretation and Analysis
- Primary Source
- Original Order — organizing or sequence of items/records as determined by owner
- This is respected
- This is respected
- Processing
- but typically, items are not organized, and arrangement of items is typically required, usually into Series, groupings of subject / author / form
- Requires creating access points, by preserving order as judged by archivist and ease of discovery and use by learners
- but typically, items are not organized, and arrangement of items is typically required, usually into Series, groupings of subject / author / form
- Descriptions
- Need to detail all items, determine historical context, contents or Finding Aids:
- detailed description fo collection
- info about creator
- histroical context of original use
- time of creation
- where it came from - Provenance
- inventory or Box List - location
- detailed description fo collection
- Need to detail all items, determine historical context, contents or Finding Aids:
- Accession
- Item, Material, or Collection added to the Archive
- Item, Material, or Collection added to the Archive
- There is a serious responsibility and role that archivists play in their “neutral” descriptions of Authors, Collections, and Accessions
- Language and Written Expressions of what is being archived can so easily be skewed one way or the other, either elevating or downplaying
- Even choosing WHAT to archive is an important decision, as in the past, there are gaps in history because of Archivists choosing what are deemed “worthy” of posession
- Language and Written Expressions of what is being archived can so easily be skewed one way or the other, either elevating or downplaying
There is a space for community-driven Archival Projects
- “Archivist in a Backpack”
- Project to empower community members to become their own archivists
- Give supplies and instructions to Encourage going out to capture their own history and preserve it in their community
- Project to empower community members to become their own archivists
- Archivist Communities
- The Blackivists
- DocNow
- Digital Transgender Archive
- Black Lesbian Archive
- The Blackivists
It’s important to understand Archivists do NOT only collect “old” things
- Often document current events that we believe future will want to study
- COVID 19 Pandemic
Libraries Role in Preserving Digital Information
By Richard Ovenden
https://www.carnegie.org/news/articles/libraries-role-in-preserving-digital-information/
“Preservation of knowledge is fundamentally not about the past but the future.”
In continuation of the concept, Personal Archiving for the Everyman…
- “As technology firms develop wearable technologies, the amount of biometric data that will be captured from each of us will reach a point that medics will be able to make increasingly accurate predictions about our future health. This will help in the prevention of disease, but it will also open up major ethical issues. Who will own this data? We may be happy to share medical data with our doctor, but would we be happy with it getting into the hands of our health insurer? Perhaps libraries and archives can play a vital role here, serving as trusted agents providing individuals with access to their personal digital information organized, secured, and preserved to the highest archival standards.”
- “Under such a scenario, citizens would control who has access to their personal information, while libraries would be granted the right to aggregate and disseminate anonymized information solely for the purposes of public health.”
- Ability to document breadth of person’s knowledge and experiences
- In a way, writing a “Will” over the sum of personal archives a person has established for theirself
- Knowledge-management, documentation of experience and knowledge accumulation…
- #PROMPT Think about times that served as a chapter marker for you, whether it was receiving bad news, finishing a project, a season of neglect and depression, meeting someone
- Ability to document breadth of person’s knowledge and experiences
- “As our digital lives continue to embrace more and more aspects of what we as individuals and societies get up to on a daily basis, we will continue to encounter ways in which libraries and archives can help society remain truly open.”
- Library and Archives as MORE than just information records chosen to be documented by history, but personal accounts as well, a WELL of real, societal experiences, as accounted by a mass of individuals
- Library and Archives as MORE than just information records chosen to be documented by history, but personal accounts as well, a WELL of real, societal experiences, as accounted by a mass of individuals
- “The case for funding libraries and archives has never been stronger, yet it needs to be repeated and amplified — loudly — if we are to avoid George Orwell’s haunting prediction in 1984: “The past was erased, the erasure was forgotten, the lie became truth.””
Related:
Archiving - Analog VS Digital
Paper Personal Archiving for the Everyman - An Explanation