BT Digital ArchivesCoventry University, BT plc and
The National Archives
Digitisation and ArchivesJISC:
championing innovation in, & use of, digital technologies on behalf of UK education & research Project funding: e-Content Capital Programme
Coventry University: research & exploitation - in digital humanities/archiving, digital technology for learning & developing skills
BT:‘world-class’ archive – chronological span, subject scope,
national/international heritage
TNA: leading expertise in curation/preservation & digitisation
The world’s oldest communications company
A story that stretches from the birth of the electric telegraph in the 1830s to the explosion of the internet and the rise of competition
Our unique and nationally significant collection charts the development of communications services in the UK
Our collection illustrates the leading role the UK, BT and its predecessors played in the progress of communications technology and its influence on society
BT Archives• Private telegraph and telephone
companies• Post Office telecommunications• BT plc• Historical phone books• Photographic - c500,000 images • Film - over 2000 titles• Advertising - 30,000 separate pieces• Reference library• Artefacts
What to digitise?• Breadth and depth (and pretty stuff)• HE focus (and ‘general public’)
photographs research reports
subject/ registry files
Category A:93,020 scans
Category B:182,757 scans
Category C:232,378 scans
Selection criteria• technology milestones
• national events
• international reach
• Government policy
• industrial relations
• diversity
• iconic products & services
Category A Original Actual
Publicity series 8,200 8,495Engineering series (end of 1969) 76,390 37,122Lecture series 1440 0Training School 650 0Research 8859 0Indexes 0 6,632
95,539 52,24943,290 less than estimate
Category BOriginal Actual
Research reports 72,242 124,176
Radio research reports 21,788 58,58194,030 182,757
Category C Original Actual
Category C files 261,740 232,378
Finding nos. @ 500 pages each 523 484
561
Total Category A+B+C 451,309 467,384
Scans breakdown by category
Category A : Photographic images Original Final
Engineering photographs, c1909-1991 TCB 417 76,390 negs 38,956 negs
Publicity photographs, 1934-1975 TCB 473 8,200 negs 8,488 negs
Training School photographs, 1930s-1950s TCB 546 650 negs 0 negs
Lecture series photographs, 1934-1955 TCB 475 1,440 negs 0 negs
Research photographs, 1950s-1989 TCB 638 8,859 negs 0 negs
Indexes 0 nrgs 6632
Total 95,359 neg 54,076 negs
Category B : Research reports
PO Engineering Dept research reports, memoranda and papers, 1878-1969
TCB 74,242 pages 124,176 pages
PO Telecommunications research reports, memoranda and papers, 1969-1981
TCC 21,788 pages 65,945 pages
Total 96,030 pages 190,121 pages
Category C : Registered minuted policy & correspondence files, 1867 – 1982
Original Actual
Telecommunications Development Directorate (TDD), 1947 - 1979 190 files 47 files
Network Planning Directorate (NPD), 1966-1979 209 files 49 files
Managing Director, Telecommunications (TH/DM series), 1162 files 39 files
Minuted files (England & Wales), 1867 – 1961 (Post 30) 1000 files 133 files
Minuted files (Ireland), 1870 – 1961 (Post 31) 35 files 5 files
Minuted files (Scotland), 1869 – 1951 (Post 32) 138 files 8 files
Minuted files (UK), 1890 – 1968 (Post 33) 1000 files 81 files
Minuted and decentralised registry files, 1876 – 1981 (Post 121) 174 files 41 files
Minuted and decentralised registry files, 1882 – 1969 (Post 122) 227 files 59 files
Minuted files, telecommunications, 1895 – 1978 (TCB 2) 498 files 96 files
Marconi / GPO correspondence, 1896 - 1909 (TCB 273) 0 2 files
BT Central Registry files, 1980-1984 0 1 file
Total 4633 files 561 files
Learning points• Language
file? archive? digital archive?• Sampling
conservation number of pages
• Counting finding number? box? scans? timesheets
• Timescales• Uncatalogued material• Expect the unexpected• Appetite for archives
www.bt.com/btdigitalarchives