Learn how we're using the past to inform the present and prepare for the future.
Evaluating and selecting the right collections management software for your organization is a critical first step in the process and one that should not be taken lightly. As collections management consultants, we frequently collaborate with clients and software developers to …
Arranging and preserving digital materials has been an ongoing challenge for repositories that hold the collections of U.S. senators and representatives. Our digital archives team recently joined forces with the Byrd Center for Legislative Studies (Byrd CLS) to conduct a …
This is a modified version of a presentation I did for the 2014 Society for History in the Federal Government conference in April. This version focuses on the legal usefulness, in environmental cases, of the official agency histories and records …
Preserving digital files for long-term access is a difficult issue for many organizations; the files can quickly become inaccessible due to media and hardware obsolescence and they are subject to degradation. With the sheer volume of digital information produced on …
The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) is yet more proof of the adage “no good deed goes unpunished.” Though intended to facilitate greater transparency in government, as those who have submitted a FOIA request can attest, the process can be …
The word “artifact” may conjure up a mental image of something archaic — a dusty old object that is stored away and no longer relevant. But when revealed through the right lens, artifacts become powerful tools for bringing a story …
GIS mapping is a powerful way to make history come to life. Combining geographic information system (GIS) data with historical information, may serve to: Present historical evidence in its precise geographical context, Visually convey geographic changes over time, or Tell …
Owners and custodians of archives collections often find themselves on the horns of a dilemma: the collections exist for researchers to use, yet they may contain information that should remain private. How then, does an archivist resolve this conflict so …
The amount of online content continues to grow exponentially, making the Internet an indispensable tool in historical research. Clay Johnson, online database expert and author of the cleverly written book The Information Diet, contends that with so much readily available …
Developing an archival program can be a daunting task—especially when the concept of “archives” is often equated with “storing old files.” However, in an era of information overload and employee turnover, companies can have a distinct competitive advantage if they …
For a historian, a good map can be a gold mine of valuable information. Beyond road names or topographical features, maps can show the historical arrangements of buildings, property owners, and even the location of a specific furnace in an …
