Assembling Documentation

Archivists assemble documentation about collections so that users may understand a collection's scope and content. Researchers use the documentation to determine whether a particular collection contains information relevant to a specific research topic. To create the documentation, archivists:

• Analyze the materials to identify their origins, structure, and content
• Use information assembled during analysis of the collection to create finding aids that provide access to the materials

The proper documentation of a collection requires that the archivist acquire understanding of its origins, structure, and content. To this end, it is necessary to discover how the collection was originally organized (if it was organized at all); the context in which the collection was generated; and the relationship of the collection's content to other collections, people, and historical events.

The archivist analyzes the content and structure of the collection, gathering information that will form the basis of the finding aid. In addition, research in sources external to the collection provides information about the context in which it was created, which will also become an integral part of the final documentation.

What Information is Collected?

During processing the archivist brings together the following information about the collection in order to create descriptions:

• Information about provenance
• Information about order and organization of documents
• Information about physical extent and condition
• Information about scope and contents of the records
• Information about administrative matters

Information about provenance
Understanding the provenance of a collection is central to properly interpreting its content and significance. It is important to note that the creator of a collection is not necessarily the creator of those documents. For example, a collection of letters may have many authors or creators, but the creator of the collection itself is the individual or agency who gathered them together.

To identify the provenance of a collection the archivist assembles information about the creator and the context in which the documents were created. The context for a collection's creation is defined not only by the individuals and corporate bodies that created them but also by the functions and activities that caused the documents to be created in the first place. To identify a collection's provenance it is necessary to ask:

• Who is responsible for creating of the collection?
• For what purpose was it created?
• What external factors affected its creation?

This section will expand on each of these questions and suggest strategies for finding the answers.

Who is responsible for creating the collection:
The creator of the collection is the individual, family, or corporate body responsible for the production or assembly of the documents. For persons and families, information such as dates of birth and death, place of birth and domicile, variant names, ethnicity, gender, occupations, and significant accomplishments is needed. For corporate bodies, information about the functions, purpose, and history of the body, geographical location and jurisdiction of its activities, its administrative hierarchy, and earlier, variant, and successor names is needed.

Sources of information. If the creator is an individual or family, information may be found in biographical directories, family histories, published works, regional and subject encyclopedias, oral histories, and the collection itself. Business and professional directories, promotional pieces, newspaper articles, and the records themselves are sources of information about corporate bodies.

For what purposes was the collection created?
Collections are assembled around the life and activities of an individual or family, or the functions and activities of a corporate body. Understanding the activity that generated a group of documents informs us of the collection's probable content. For example, letters written to exchange news among family members are likely to contain information about social events, births, deaths, and personal commentary on contemporary events. Records created as the result of business transactions are likely to include legal and related financial records. Identifying these activities alerts us to what is likely to be found in a collection, but in no way precludes the possibility that other types of information might also be included.

Sources of information. Information about the context of a collection's creation may be found in accession records, interviews with donors, references in books about the collection's creator, and the collection itself. The identification of the types of materials found in the collection helps to determine what types of activities are documented. For example, financial daybooks indicate the existence of business transactions, while diaries suggest personal reflection and observation.

Information relating to the order and organization of documents
The principles of provenance and original order have important implications for the physical organization of collections. They suggest that the archivist must place a high value on the identification and retention of the original sequence of files and documents. This is particularly appropriate for modern organizational records. Contemporary office practices and records management principles generally result in records that come into archival custody as they were maintained in the office of origin, with the administrative structure and activities of those offices well documented.

Personal papers and older organizational records, on the other hand, are less likely to have been maintained in such an ordered way. The patterns of creation and use may not be evident many years later when the archivist acquires the collection. Under these circumstances, it becomes more difficult to establish the relationships between groups of documents.

If original order is unclear, the archivist works to reassemble it by looking for relationships among individual items and for connections among groups of items. Items with similar provenance are brought together in progressively larger groupings from the file unit to series, until the original organization is reconstructed. This process can be like sorting out the pieces of several jigsaw puzzles that have been dumped into one box. As the archivist works to reassemble the original order and structure of the collection, it can sometimes become apparent that some of the pieces are missing. Part of an archivist's education is learning how to make informed guesses about pieces of the collection that may not have survived.

If it is impossible to discern anything about original order from evidence in the collection, materials are frequently sorted first according to format or document types, then chronologically to present the documents as objectively as possible. Physically organizing documents in a collection according to a subject-based classification system such as Dewey Decimal System or the Library of Congress Classification is not appropriate for archival materials. An externally imposed organization based on subject matter destroys the relationships between documents and the events to which they relate, and masks the meaning inherited from the context of their creation.

Information relating to physical extent and condition
The user needs to know how much material there is in the collection, what forms it takes, its physical condition, and any restrictions on access or use due to its condition. Methods for recording the extent vary. One method is to record the extent of textual materials in terms of the linear or cubic feet the documents occupy on the shelf; another is to record the number of items in the collection. Established institutional practices and the format of the materials themselves often determine what methods are used. The archivist also notes the presence of different types of materials such as letters, diaries, or financial records in the collection. Non-textual materials such as images or computer files are frequently recorded in terms of the number of individual items, and other units of measure are used as appropriate.

Information about scope and contents
In order for the archivist to be able to describe the contents of a collection for the user, and thus provide access, it is necessary to extract certain kinds of information from the records. The questions asked at this stage are very similar to those asked when establishing provenance; the difference lies in how the information is used.

Information about provenance comes from outside sources, as well as from the collection itself. Information about the contents of the collection itself is derived directly from the materials through content analysis; it is used to create summary descriptions to guide the user to the collection or part of a collection containing the desired information.

In order to develop summary descriptions for the user archivists extract information about the contents of a collection by attempting to answer such questions as…

• What activities, events, and functions are documented?
• Who is involved, and what is their relationship to the activity, event, or function?
• What is the setting and location?
• What is the time period?
• What are the products, outcome, or consequences of the activities documented in the collection?
• What topics are addressed?
• What types of materials are included?

Content analysis
As the archivist analyzes the collection by asking the above questions, she or he must also decide whether this information is significant enough to include in a summary description. Since most collections contain too much information to be included in such a description, part of the archivist's art is determining what ought to be included or excluded. Generally speaking, archivists make their decisions in the context of the repository's mission, the significance of a particular piece of information in relationship to other information in the collection, and the historical setting in which the information was generated. The process of making these decisions is called content analysis, a skill which is often developed by working under the guidance of an experienced archivist.

Significance to the institution
Archival collections are acquired by institutions because their preservation contributes to the fulfillment of the institutional mission. Collections may be acquired based on the localities they document, the identity of the creator of the collection, the topics that they address, the time periods covered, or their relationship to a particular occupation, ethnic, or cultural group. Since the collection is acquired because it is significant to the institution, it is important to include this information in the collection description.

Relative significance of activities and functions documented in the collection
An archival description should include information about the principal activities and functions documented within a collection. Often the relative number of items in a collection documenting specific activities and functions will determine whether these activities and functions are recorded in the description. Some archivists suggest that if 20 percent or more of the items in a collection reflect a specific activity or function, then a description of the activity should be included in the collection's archival description.

Sometimes, however, the significance of a group of documents cannot be properly determined soley n the basis of the relative number of items documenting specific activities and functions. Consider as an example a company's corporate records of which over 90 percent are personnel records and sales invoices, while the remaining 10 percent includes minutes of board meetings, correspondence from stockholders and directors, and financial statements. In terms of understanding the functions and activities of the company, the latter 10 percent greatly outweighs the remaining 90 percent in terms of importance, and the summary description should reflect this.

Significance of historical context
In some cases factors such as historic events, political or social movements, or ideas have an influence on the contents of a collection and/or its creators. In some cases the impact of such contextual influences is overt. The relationship between the Great Depression and the business records of a failing construction company in the early 1930s is fairly clear. In other cases, however, the influence of external forces is more subtle. For example, knowledge of the historic context in which a trade embargo threatened business helps to account for a marked change in the tone and content of correspondence between two merchants. Although the embargo was not the reason for the correspondence, and perhaps was not even a topic, it did color the content, and therefore is significant enough to be part of the archival description.

Administrative data
Some administrative details are of vital concern to the user, especially information about any restrictions on access to the records or conditions under which they may be used and cited. The long-term preservation of some personal papers and organizational records requires the archivist to recognize that they may contain materials which are, in the short run, sensitive or restricted by law. Agreements to close a collection for a period of time, or to subject them to some other conditions of access are not uncommon, and need to be made clear to the user. Factors such as preservation considerations or remote storage might further limit access. Finally, copyright restrictions, especially where donors retain intellectual property rights, need to be noted in the archival description.