Post on 12-Jan-2016
primary sources
today’s line-up
primary sources
what are primary sources?how & why are they collected?how are they organized?where & how could I access them?why would I ever use them?
prep for trip to Wilson Library next Thursday
Pop Quiz
• Which digital collection(s) did you explore?• Think about material in that collection…what
sort of research questions/inquiries would the collection support? In other words, who would use this collection for research?
• Describe one difference between an “archive” and a “library”
primary sources
provide first-hand testimony or direct evidence concerning a topic under investigation
created by witnesses or recorders who experienced the events or conditions being documented
often these sources are created at the time when the events or conditions are occurring…but could be recorded later
primary sources
autobiographies diaries & journals
memoires legal and financial documents
oral histories photographs
business correspondence maps
personal correspondence architectural drawings
computer tape objects
video & audio recordings government regulations and treaties
hearings & debates of legislative bodies; court cases census data
records of government expenditures & finances
regalia / artifacts (e.g. war memorabilia)
scientific data music (e.g. music scores, musical instruments, sound recordings)
visual materials (e.g. original art, graphic art) dissertations
primary sources
archivesthe records made or received and maintained by an institution or organization in pursuance of its legal obligations or in the transaction of its business
manuscriptsa body of papers of an individual or a family
manuscript and archival materials are unique resources that can be found in only one library or institution (though digital copies or copies on microfilm/microfiche may be available elsewhere)
how & why are primary sources collected?
required by law – usually “records”Birth/death certificates; marriage license
company / organization policyPersonnel files; incorporation docs
historical societiesPhotos; military garb
religious groupsMembership; sermons; pamphlets
for profitAncestry.com
intentional collecting – e.g. research, endowment or grantNorth Carolina Collection (UNC)
familyBirth certificates; medical records; photos; scrapbooks; journals
archives: what do they keep?
• records which are no longer required for current use but have been selected for permanent preservation because of their evidential or informational value.
ARCHIVES LIBRARIES MUSEUMSWhat do they keep?
Inactive records that have been selected for permanent preservation usually unpublished (can be in any format and unique)
Published materials (can be in many formats) that is not unique
Objects and artifacts (and associated documentation) which may or may not be unique
How is the material arranged?
In the order determined and used by the creator(s)
According to a pre-determined classification system (LC, DDC)
Arrangement is not significant, control is.
ARCHIVES LIBRARIES MUSEUMSWhat is their objective?
Protection of archives and their evidential and informational values
Building appropriate and comprehensive collections that are properly housed and effectively used
Collection and protection of selected objects for the community
Who can consult the material?
Depends on archives policy and conditions imposed by donor
Any member of community
Any member of the public
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a state agency, and its offices and departments are obligated to follow the requirements of the North Carolina Public Records Law (North Carolina General Statute 132) for retention and disposition of records.
how are they organized?
• depends…• “Finding Aid” - description of an archival
collection, usually containing a history of the person or organization that produced the collection and an inventory of its contents
• EAD Encoded Archival Description – XML standard used to encode data about archival
materials– makes things easier to find in an electronic
environment
appraisaldef: process of evaluating records to determine
their value and ultimate disposition
– physical volume– frequency of use– administrative and operational need served by the
record– legal and fiscal regulations governing retention– historical significance– economic advantage of moving the records from high
cost office storage to low cost records storage space or direct disposal
– whether this is the record copy or a duplicate
where & how to access
• think about who might have relevant records/material– government entity (international, national, state, county)– professional organization/society (e.g. state geological
society)– dedicated entity (special collection – e.g. TWU’s WASP
collection)
• ask librarian
why would I ever use an archive?
• legislation (statutes, regulations, and orders-in-council) and case law (decisions of courts and administrative tribunals)
• genealogy / family tree• Popular culture / period pieces
December 1963: Members of several civil rights organizations staged this holiday march, carrying letters addressed to political leaders to urge anti-discrimination legislation. They requested that fellow Chapel Hill citizens follow suit to "Send Freedom Letters for Christmas."
Drafts of Langston Hughes's poem "Ballad of Booker T.,” 30 May-1 June 1941
Wallace, D.A. (2011). Memory ethics – or the presence of the past in the present. Archival Science, 11, 1-12.
Archivists normatively position themselves as impartial and honest brokering custodians of the past, immune from the pressures and persuasions that conflict the rest of contemporary society.
Consider the politics of record-making and record keeping and how they shape and often mis-shape the construction of the past and present.
Action or inaction
Our field trip to Wilson next Monday
• 504 Wilson Library