Kate Theimer - Appraisal and Acquisition

Innovative Practices for
Archives and Special Collections

Kate Theimer

ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD

Lanham Boulder New York Toronto Plymouth, UK

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Appraisal and acquisition : innovative practices for archives and special collections / edited by Kate Theimer.

pages cm. -- (Innovative practices for archives and special collections) Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-1-4422-4953-0 (hardcover : alk. paper) -- ISBN 978-1-4422-3854-1 (pbk. : alk. paper) -- ISBN 978-1-4422-3855-8 (ebook)

1. Appraisal of archival materials. 2. Archives--Acquisitions. 3. Libraries--Special collections. I. Theimer, Kate, 1966- editor.

CD973.A77A67 2015

025.2'814--dc23

2014048167

TM The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.

Printed in the United States of America

Appraisal is, arguably, the most important thing archivists do. After all, determining what materials are preserved dictates the future of the archives. However, in practice, archival appraisal is often just as, if not even more, affected by the concerns of the present rather than the possible needs of the future. The literature of the archival profession is rich in theoretical discussions of appraisal, but the decisions archivists make in their work are influenced by a host of concrete issues. This is not to say that archivists do not take future needs into account in making their decisions but rather that what is often presented as a theoretical exercise is actually a very practical one. The question What should we collect? turns into a series of more pragmatic questions, such as How can we collect these materials?, How can we provide access to them?, How would these materials be used?, How can we preserve them?, and Where will we store them?

When appraisal develops into acquisition, materials that were accepted as an aggregate can reveal a host of individual and unique problems. All too often what an archivist thinks he or she has agreed to accept is not quite the same as the materials that arrive on the loading dock. And when resources of all kinds are limited for most repositories, ensuring that transferred materials are worth investing in has become a priority. Therefore making wise decisions at a high level about what to collect has become even more important, and making prudent decisions at lower levels has become a necessity.

Appraisal and Acquisition: Innovative Practices for Archives and Special Collections explores how archivists and special collections librarians in organizations of different sizes and types have approached these kinds of challenges, as well as exploring opportunities to acquire new kinds of materials and conduct thoughtful reappraisal. These case studies show a range of strategies and processes, but all were selected because they demonstrate ideas that could be transferred into many other settings. They can serve as models, sources of inspiration, or starting points for new discussions. This volume will be useful to those working in archives and special collections, as well as other cultural heritage organizations, and provides ideas ranging from those that require long-term planning and coordination to ones that could be more quickly implemented. The chapters also provide students and educators in archives, library, and public history graduate programs a resource for understanding the varieties of issues related to appraisal and acquisition and how they can be addressed.

I debated with myself for some time over the title of this series, Innovative Practices for Archives and Special Collections. After all, what is innovative and new to one person is often standard procedure to another. Another option was to call them best practices and follow the model of a series of similar books from the same publisher featuring case studies from libraries. But this seemed equally problematic. In a field that seems to embrace the phrase it depends as a mantra, putting forward the experience of any one archives as best practice seemed ill advised.