Open Forum

Help!! I work at the Champaign County Historical Society in Ohio and we have just inherited around 400 boxes from the archives of the local university which closed unexpectedly in April. How do I even begin to catalog all of this? I'm just overwhelmed at the moment and in need of guidance. Any suggestions, webinars, you tube videos, publications, etc. that you feel would be helpful in figuring this mess out would be greatly appreciated!!

Cheryl Ogden

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Cheryl Ogden
Director
Urbana OH
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Original Message:
Sent: 8/13/2020 1:18:00 PM
From: Cheryl Ogden
Subject: Archives

Help!! I work at the Champaign County Historical Society in Ohio and we have just inherited around 400 boxes from the archives of the local university which closed unexpectedly in April. How do I even begin to catalog all of this? I'm just overwhelmed at the moment and in need of guidance. Any suggestions, webinars, you tube videos, publications, etc. that you feel would be helpful in figuring this mess out would be greatly appreciated!!

Cheryl Ogden

------------------------------
Cheryl Ogden
Director
Urbana OH
------------------------------

Thank you! It is nice to know that others have survived this process!

Cheryl

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Cheryl Ogden
Director
Urbana OH
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Original Message:
Sent: 08-14-2020 09:20 AM
From: Vivian Zoë
Subject: Archives

Hi, Cheryl - wow!  What a challenge... but I am going to offer advice that may sound trite at first... Confucius says, the journey of a thousand miles starts with the first step.

We've had similar things happen to us and we are still chipping away at them.  You just need to start and don't think you have to do it all at once, even in a steady stream... get volunteers, interns, etc. (when you are again allowed) and little by little over the years, it will be conquered.

We recently worked with the august Yale University Art Gallery to research Bela Lyon Pratt, an important CT sculptor and Yale alumnus.  They had objects and archives (related also to Pratt's OTHER important CT relatives who invented the first American piano and started the first American music college for women).  They had had the collection for years and had not yet begun to catalogue ... or even inventory.

I'm sure there are other Ohio institutions who will offer guidance and there are resources at AAM and AASLH.  You will get there.

Vivian F. Zoë, Director
Slater Memorial Museum
108 Crescent Street, Norwich CT 06360
860-425-5560 vox
860-885-0379 fax

"Inspiration is for amateurs - the rest of us just show up and get to work," Chuck Close, 2003

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Original Message:
Sent: 8/13/2020 1:18:00 PM
From: Cheryl Ogden
Subject: Archives

Help!! I work at the Champaign County Historical Society in Ohio and we have just inherited around 400 boxes from the archives of the local university which closed unexpectedly in April. How do I even begin to catalog all of this? I'm just overwhelmed at the moment and in need of guidance. Any suggestions, webinars, you tube videos, publications, etc. that you feel would be helpful in figuring this mess out would be greatly appreciated!!

Cheryl Ogden

------------------------------
Cheryl Ogden
Director
Urbana OH
------------------------------

Hi Cheryl,

You are not alone!   Collections managers from almost the beginning of time have experienced some variation of this problem.   A good place to start is Angela Kipp's book, Managing Previously Unmanaged Collections (it's available from Amazon and well-worth buying).   She will not only give you good guidance on where to start, stop and continue, but also how to keep your morale up while doing it.

The More Product, Less Process (MPLP) approach to archival processing would also be a help to you.   There are a number of articles on the subject, starting with one published in American Archivist in 2005 by Mark A. Greene and Dennis Meissner.     Dennis Meissner did a webinar on the topic for the ALA.     If you google More Product Less Process you'll find lots more, including YouTube videos, etc.

Good luck and stay safe.

------------------------------
Janice Klein


Tempe AZ
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 08-13-2020 01:17 PM
From: Cheryl Ogden
Subject: Archives

Help!! I work at the Champaign County Historical Society in Ohio and we have just inherited around 400 boxes from the archives of the local university which closed unexpectedly in April. How do I even begin to catalog all of this? I'm just overwhelmed at the moment and in need of guidance. Any suggestions, webinars, you tube videos, publications, etc. that you feel would be helpful in figuring this mess out would be greatly appreciated!!

Cheryl Ogden

------------------------------
Cheryl Ogden
Director
Urbana OH
------------------------------

Thank you! I'll check them all out!!

Cheryl

------------------------------
Cheryl Ogden
Director
Urbana OH
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 08-14-2020 01:37 PM
From: Janice Klein
Subject: Archives

Hi Cheryl,

You are not alone!   Collections managers from almost the beginning of time have experienced some variation of this problem.   A good place to start is Angela Kipp's book, Managing Previously Unmanaged Collections (it's available from Amazon and well-worth buying).   She will not only give you good guidance on where to start, stop and continue, but also how to keep your morale up while doing it.

The More Product, Less Process (MPLP) approach to archival processing would also be a help to you.   There are a number of articles on the subject, starting with one published in American Archivist in 2005 by Mark A. Greene and Dennis Meissner.     Dennis Meissner did a webinar on the topic for the ALA.     If you google More Product Less Process you'll find lots more, including YouTube videos, etc.

Good luck and stay safe.

------------------------------
Janice Klein


Tempe AZ

Original Message:
Sent: 08-13-2020 01:17 PM
From: Cheryl Ogden
Subject: Archives

Help!! I work at the Champaign County Historical Society in Ohio and we have just inherited around 400 boxes from the archives of the local university which closed unexpectedly in April. How do I even begin to catalog all of this? I'm just overwhelmed at the moment and in need of guidance. Any suggestions, webinars, you tube videos, publications, etc. that you feel would be helpful in figuring this mess out would be greatly appreciated!!

Cheryl Ogden

------------------------------
Cheryl Ogden
Director
Urbana OH
------------------------------

Hi Cheryl.
I know the feeling as a Collections Manager/Registrar for a museum I work at. The suggestions from other replies are great tips. It definitely helps to have volunteers and/or interns to inventory the collection and you can guide them on how to properly catalog them. Maybe check with a nearby college/university with students who major/minor in museum/library/archive studies that may be interested in helping to catalog the collection with you. There are lots of tools out there for archiving materials. Here is a great starting point: The Society of American Archivists website:  https://www2.archivists.org/   
Good Luck,
Shellie Eagan
Carver Museum
Austin, TX

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Shellie Eagan
Collections Manager
George Washington Carver Museum & Cultural Center
Austin TX
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Original Message:
Sent: 08-14-2020 02:18 PM
From: Cheryl Ogden
Subject: Archives

Thank you! I'll check them all out!!

Cheryl

------------------------------
Cheryl Ogden
Director
Urbana OH

Original Message:
Sent: 08-14-2020 01:37 PM
From: Janice Klein
Subject: Archives

Hi Cheryl,

You are not alone!   Collections managers from almost the beginning of time have experienced some variation of this problem.   A good place to start is Angela Kipp's book, Managing Previously Unmanaged Collections (it's available from Amazon and well-worth buying).   She will not only give you good guidance on where to start, stop and continue, but also how to keep your morale up while doing it.

The More Product, Less Process (MPLP) approach to archival processing would also be a help to you.   There are a number of articles on the subject, starting with one published in American Archivist in 2005 by Mark A. Greene and Dennis Meissner.     Dennis Meissner did a webinar on the topic for the ALA.     If you google More Product Less Process you'll find lots more, including YouTube videos, etc.

Good luck and stay safe.

------------------------------
Janice Klein


Tempe AZ

Original Message:
Sent: 08-13-2020 01:17 PM
From: Cheryl Ogden
Subject: Archives

Help!! I work at the Champaign County Historical Society in Ohio and we have just inherited around 400 boxes from the archives of the local university which closed unexpectedly in April. How do I even begin to catalog all of this? I'm just overwhelmed at the moment and in need of guidance. Any suggestions, webinars, you tube videos, publications, etc. that you feel would be helpful in figuring this mess out would be greatly appreciated!!

Cheryl Ogden

------------------------------
Cheryl Ogden
Director
Urbana OH
------------------------------