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UGS 303
Introduction
to Records
and Archives
Ciaran B.
Trace
4/25/2011
Spring 2011
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Name that
Tune…
Performers?
Song Title?
Spring 2011
“The Information Family Tree”
(From “Understanding Society through its Records.” http://john.curtin.edu.au/society/index.html)
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 Popular Books,






Spring 2011
Magazines
Research and Public
Information
Industry & Government
Reports & Statistics
Technical and Specialist
Literature, Databases &
Internet Resources
In-house Research and
Management Reports
Records & Record Series
Documents & Databases
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 Essential characteristic of a record
RECORDS
Characteristics
Spring 2011
is its role in providing evidence of
some activity.
 An activity = action or a set of
actions undertaken by an individual,
or group of individuals, and
resulting in a definable outcome
 Informational value: The usefulness
or significance of materials based
on their content
 Records are fixed, contextual,
organic, and unique.
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Fixed - information presented in a
RECORDS
Characteristics
Spring 2011
static form
 Contextual - derive much of their
meaning/ usefulness/value as
evidence, from the context in which
they are created, maintained and
used
Organic - natural output of work
processes/ sequences of transactions
Unique- records maintained in
context are one-of-a-kind
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ROLE OF
RECORDS
IN SOCIETY
NARA:
http://www.fac
ebook.com/vide
o/video.php?v=
1036005763169
97
Spring 2011
Safeguarding Identity and
Entitlements
 Organizational, Personal and
Government Accountability
 Promoting Good Governance and
Institutional Stability
 Construction and Transfer of
Culture and Memory
 Justice
 Safeguarding Civil Rights
 Services to Citizens
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ARCHIVES
Archives = Materials created or
received by a person, family, or
organization, public or private, in
the conduct of their affairs and
preserved because of their enduring
value.
Records that have enduring value =
archival records.
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Example of
an Archival
Record
Spring 2011
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Example of
an Archival
Record
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Other Meanings of the Word “Archive”?
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 An organization that
collects the records of
individuals, families, or
other organizations.
 The professional discipline
responsible for
administering such
collections and
organizations.
 The building housing
archival collections.
Spring 2011
Archivist
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 An individual responsible
for appraising, acquiring,
arranging, describing,
preserving, and providing
access to records of
enduring value, according
to the principles of
provenance, original order,
and collective control to
protect the materials
authenticity and context.
Spring 2011
 What do we mean by the
term “archivist”?
The Hierarchy of Information Management
(Taken from The World Bank Group Archives learning module “Record Keeping and Accountability,” available at
http://worldbank.org/archives)
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Spring 2011
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 Both records managers and
Purpose of
Records
Professionals?
Spring 2011
archivists are involved in managing
records.
 Records managers are concerned
with the complete, accurate, and
reliable documentation of
organizational activity for current
purposes.
 Archivists are responsible for the
identification and preservation of
records identified as being of
continuing value for society.
Archivists By the Numbers….
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Spring 2011
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Archival
Positions….
 New York, NY: Archivist, American

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Spring 2011
Kennel Club
Washington, DC: Electronic Records
Format Specialist, NARA
Washington, DC: Records/Archives
Officer, The World Bank
Houston, TX: Records Mgr, Museum of
Fine Arts
Honolulu, HI: Archivist (Term), Volcanos
National Park
Tempe, AZ: Bilingual Manuscript
Collection Archivist, AZ State University
Appraisal
Selection
Utilization –
Reference
and Access
Storage
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Acquisition &
Accessioning
Arrangement
& Description
Preservation
Processing…
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Conservation and Preservation
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Accessing and Using Archival Materials
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Our Digital Lives….
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Our Digital Lives….
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Enduring
Value…
Spring 2011
 Born-digital literary materials: poet,
hypertext author, professor, and
theorist Michael Joyce (HRC)
 The Victoria Climbié Inquiry:
Website (National Archives, UK)
 Twitter Donates Entire Tweet
Archive to Library of Congress
 Census Bureau has deposited the
raw, anonymized census data
in the social science data archive
(ICPSR) at the university of
Michigan.
Digital Preservation…. Gone, Gone, Gone?
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Spring 2011
Reality Check
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 A file format may be
superseded by newer
versions, which may no
longer be supported by the
current vendor or relevant
standards body (old versions
of Word, Visicalc, WordStar /
Perfect)
 Storage medium may be
superseded by newer and
denser versions, or by new
types of media.
Spring 2011
 The device needed to read
a storage medium may no
longer be manufactured
(Floppy disk drive?)
 Software used to create,
manage, or access digital
content may be superseded
by newer versions or
newer generations with
more capabilities using the
most current technologies.
Reality Check
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 Computers of every size
and scale are continuously
being superseded by faster
and more powerful
machines that store and
process more content.
 Technology vendors
compete, emerge, merge,
and fade making it even
more difficult to maintain
digital content over time.
Spring 2011
 Computer components and
media can physically fail
due to human error,
natural events, and the
passing of time.
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http://www.youtu
be.com/watch?v=
pbBa6Oam7w&feature=relate
d
Digital Preservation and
Nuclear Disaster: An Animation
Spring 2011