Organizing Archival Records (American Association for State and Local History)

Much of our nation’s documentary heritage resides in small historical societies, libraries, cultural organizations, houses of worship, and museums. The preservation of this heritage often depends on the dedicated efforts of people who, in their workaday world, practice some profession other than archivist. For twenty five years, Organizing Archival Records has equipped non-professional archivists to tackle the challenging task of arranging and describing archival materials.

The latest edition preserves the practical, easy-to-follow, step-by-step approach of earlier editions while updating its content to reflect current archival practices:

• practical ways to arrange and describe digital records;
• simple tools you can use to manage and store your descriptions, whatever the level of your computer skills;
• how to share your descriptions with others;
• why provenance and original order are foundational to arrangement and description;
• how the principles codified in SAA’s Describing Archives: A Content Standard can guide your arrangement and description process;
• an expanded discussion of related topics, including appraisal, security, safe handling of records, storage conditions, and what to do with all the records that were in your archives before you read Organizing Archival Records.