I recently traveled to Houston to visit my mother. Among the many things we had planned, a number of them involved sorting paperwork and moving stuff back and forth from storage - which I am quite good at, was a meeting with folks at her retirement community about their archival material. I told her I was happy to meet with folks to talk about what is possible with their historical materials. I wouldn’t be able to do the archival processing and arranging but I would be happy to offer an opinion.
I don’t believe in “experts” because there is always something else to learn. The word “expert” seems so final and authoritative - but no one can know everything. “Expertise” feels entirely different. I have some expertise in archives best practices, but I am always learning because practices change over time. So I offer my opinion with that caveat. I also believe in conversations, dialogue and questions with a check for understanding. When I am trying to explain something to a researcher or really anyone, I often end with “does that make sense?” so I can confirm that what I think I communicated actually came across to the other people.
My mother wanted me to look at the boxes of records and see what is to be done to preserve them. There is a general sense that the records are important but most people feel lost with regards to next steps. People see boxes of documents, drawings, photos, albums, news clippings and tend to feel overwhelmed by the scope of what needs to be done so the boxes go back onto the shelf or into the closet. How do I know this you may ask? Because I do the same thing. These projects take time and attention to detail to do well. I believe in doing it once, so it is crucial to think through the steps.
Most folks want to start with buying the gray archival boxes and putting records into acid free folders. And yes that is part of the process but any archival project starts with securing the materials and getting a handle on what you have (a macroappraisal). Before you buy supplies you need to know what you have, so you know what you need. It is also important to figure out what you want to do with the records, what kind of access you want to provide and how much money you want to spend.
I have written up our conversation notes and provided my suggestions. We will see what happens next. The thing about archives and archivists is that we are in it for the long haul. We look at our work in terms of decades not days; except in the case of eminent danger to records like fire, flooding or the family just wants to get rid of everything right now.
I am still practicing and I am learning, which is good.
For more details on how to get started on your own archival records there are a number of resources available online.
Donating Your Personal or Family Records to a Repository
Really like the audio of this post.