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Intro to Archival Research WorkshopTuesday, Oct 7th at 1pmGC Library, room C196.05

A Day in the Library:(Behind the Scenes) Research Tour @ NYPLTuesday, Oct 7th at 6:30pmSchwartzman Building, 5th Avenue at 42nd St.

New-York Historical Society Open HouseThursday, Oct 9th at 3pm170 Central Park West (at 77th Street)

For more info, visit the library blog atgclibrary.commons.gc.cuny.edu/events

Intro to Archival Research

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Intro to Archival ResearchGraduate Center Library

room C196.05

Tuesday, Oct 7th 1pm – 3pmShawn(ta) Smith

Reference & Instruction Librarianssmith4@gc.cuny.edu

@CUNYGCLibrary

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Workshop Outline

I. Introductions

II. What is Archival Research?

III. Archival Research Examples

IV. Preparing for the Archive

V. Using the Archive

VI. After the Archive

VII.Activity

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I. Introductions

• Your Name

• Institutional Affiliation (if any)

• Research Project (if any)

• What you’d like to get out of this

workshop

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II. What is Archival Research

Archives are

The non-current records of individuals groups, institutions, and governments that contain information of enduring value.

From Society of American Archivists, “So you want to be an archivist: An overview of the profession http://www2.archivists.org/profession

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II. What is Archival Research

• manuscripts • diaries • personal papers • organizational

records • oral histories • maps• photographs • books

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• ephemera• artwork • sound

recordings• moving images• periodicals • pamphlets • posters • drawings • artifacts

Formats of archival collections include:

and more...

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II. What is Archival Research

Researchers

- use archival materials for their administrative value and for purposes other than those for which they were created.

- often seek primary sources, or materials that contain direct evidence, first-hand testimony, or an eyewitness account of a topic or event under investigation.

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III. Archival Research Examples

• Photography as History – uses archival materials as the base for the dissertation

• Collecting Experiences- Chooses to locate the disciplinary intersection between archival studies, art theory, and sociological theory; also covers information on Archival concepts

• The Tuskegee Syphilis Study: Access and Control over Controversial Records

• Narrative Inquiry into Psyche: Life Story and Trauma Expressed through the Photographs, Novel, and Memoir of Three War Veterans

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IV. Preparing for the Archive

Pre-prep Check-Off List(Before You Begin)

Scope

Project Timeline

Idea of ideal resource

Literature Review of secondary sources - use primary sources to solve

research problems)

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IV. Preparing for the Archive

Preparation Check-off List

1. Literature Review of secondary

sources - use primary sources to solve

research problems)Follow the leads in published

sourcesMine the text, footnotes,

acknowledgements and bibliographies in books and articles for ideas

Consult guides to the literature on your topic

Review specialized bibliographiesVisit websites related to your

subject

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IV. Preparing for the Archive

Preparation Check-off List

2. Identify Research Questions

Who would have produced sources related to your topic?

What types of sources might exist?

When would they have been produced?

Where?Why and for whom?

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IV. Preparing for the Archive

Preparation Check-off List

3. Identify archival collections in

databases & repositories

Archivegrid.org

http://archives.nypl.org/

http://dlib.nyu.edu/findingaids/

Digital Collections

dp.la

U-Idaho Primary Sources List

Library Purchased Digital Collections

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IV. Preparing for the Archive

Preparation Check-off List

4. Investigate Finding Aids & Digital

CollectionsFinding Aids will illustrate:

Size of Collection Scope Arrangement Access & Restrictions

Digital Collections can be searched online, while finding aids can be searched for material collections

Some Digital Collections are born digital; others are digitized.

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IV. Preparing for the Archive

Preparation Check-off List

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• Review the Repository’s Website– Check hours, registration requirements,

internet access, laptops, cameras, reproduction policies, limits on materials, etc.

– Read collection descriptions – Consult the finding aids – Identify specific materials you wish to use

by the collection name and call number, boxe(s), folders, etc.

• Contact Reference Staff– Tell them your Research Question– Tell them which material you would like to

see– Ask if there are other materials – Verify the availability of the materials– Ask if materials are available remotely– You may be able to request photocopies or

scans or borrow microfilm via interlibrary loan

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V. Using the Archive

• Visiting the Archive– Every archive is different– Plan ahead– Archival research takes time– Repositories may have limited

public hours and you may have to make several visits

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V. Using the Archive

• Common Services in Archives– Open to the public– Free access to materials– Photocopying or scans for a fee

(takes time)– Self-service non-flash photography– Library catalogs, archival finding

aids, reference sources– Laptops may be permitted and

wireless access may be available– Microfilm reader/printer/scanners– Research assistance

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V. Using the Archive

• Common Rules & Procedures– Special collections usually operate

differently – Registration & photo ID required– Sign in daily– No coats, no large bags– No food, no drink, no gum– Forms for requesting materials,

photocopying, photos, permission to publish

– Photocopying usually done by staff (takes time)

– Pencils only, no pens– Closed stacks – no browsing– Non-circulating– Appointments or advance notice

may be required to use materials

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V. Using the Archive

Handling Materials

• Handle documents carefully

• Read books in book cradles

• Use gloves when provided

• Inform library staff when you encounter volumes with uncut pages

• Keep folders of documents flat on the table

• Do not hold documents up in the air to read them

• Turn pages gently

• Do not disturb the order of the documents

• Use pencils to take notes

• Do not eat or drink near materials

• Wash your hands before handling documents Intro to Archival Research 18

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VI. After the Archive

Evaluating Sources

Whether using primary, secondary, or reference sources, in print or online, an essential step in the research process is evaluating your sources. Be sure to consider:

– Author Authority

– Audience and Purpose

– Accuracy and Completeness

– Perspective and Bias

– Footnotes and Documentation in Secondary Sources

Adapted from The Information-Literate Historian by Jenny L. Presnell (New York: Oxford University Press, 2007)

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VI. After the Archive

Citing Sources

• Take accurate notes when doing research in unpublished manuscripts and archival material so you can find items again if you need to, and so other researchers will be able to go back to the source when following your footnote or bibliography entry.

• Accurately record:– the collection name– box number– folder number– document details when taking notes. – the author– the recipient– Item date

• Format your citations as instructed in the finding aid for the collection.

• If you wish to quote from unpublished materials in a special library collection, you must request permission from the repository as well as from the appropriate copyright holders. Intro to Archival Research 20

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VI. After the Archive

Citation Management

• Zotero as a Citation Manager can create Archival Items

• Take notes in a particular location

• Link Files to Citation Manager• Record fields based on

needed Citation Style

http://zotero.org

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VI. After the Archive

Permissions • Are the materials that I want to site,

“unpublished?”• What is the institution’s restrictions for use

of unpublished material for publication?• If it is clear that copyright is owned by

the institution, then write them a letter.

Permissions Letter ExamplesCopyright Crash Coursehttp://copyright.lib.utexas.edu/permmm.html

Model Letter Requesting Use (Columbia)http://copyright.columbia.edu/copyright/files/2010/12/model-letter-reprinting-into-a-new-work-121010.pdf

Instructions for Permission Letters (Pitt)http://www.pitt.edu/~graduate/etd/downloads/222c3.pdf

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VI. After the Archive

Permissions & Dissertations with UMI

http://www.lib.umich.edu/files/services/copyright/Dissertations.pdf

Page 15-16 which covers Materials in Archives and Special Collections. The document also sites UCONNs copyright of unpublished works document, which also gives sample permission letters:

http://www.lib.uconn.edu/copyright/permission_seeking.html

when materials are under copyright and not covered by fair use (often the case if unpublished material). And lastly, because we publish with UMI, their sample letters with their language affixed:

http://media2.proquest.com/documents/UMI_CopyrightGuide.pdfIntro to Archival Research 23

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Intro to Archival Research WorkshopTuesday, Oct 7th at 1pmGC Library, room C196.05

A Day in the Library:(Behind the Scenes) Research Tour @ NYPLTuesday, Oct 7th at 6:30pmSchwartzman Building, 5th Avenue at 42nd St.

New-York Historical Society Open HouseThursday, Oct 9th at 3pm170 Central Park West (at 77th Street)

For more info, visit the library blog atgclibrary.commons.gc.cuny.edu/events