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Donating Papers

Page history last edited by Dr. Karla Gower 15 years ago

 

The resources on this page will help you make decisions about donating your papers to a repository (prhistorywiki.org is not a repository).

 

Please note that this page is locked to guard against commercial posts. Other contributions are welcome; just contact the site administrator.

 


 

The donation of a collection of personal or professional papers to a repository means that your papers will be preserved for use as a historical source—a time capsule, if you will—by future scholars, students, and others seeking knowledge about you and your contributions to public relations and/or to the community. Be sure to check with your libraries, universities, and local and state historical societies to see if they have repositories and/or guidelines for donating papers. Remember that you must understand and abide by any legal constraints concerning the ownership of any papers relating to work you conducted in an organization’s name.

 

There are other points to consider, as well, such as what constitutes a donation, a repository’s criteria for accepting a donation, and your responsibilities and those of the repository in regard to your donation. For this information and more, be sure to visit The Society of American Archivists: A guide to donating your personal or family papers to a repository. Another helpful source is The American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works.The AIC's Caring for Your Treasures page offers tips on protecting your papers in the meantime.  For ideas on how to establish a collection of your organization's papers, you could start with  The Society of American Archivists' catalog, where brochures can be ordered for a fee.  It is also possible to retain a professional archivist to assist with on-site cataloging. You could start your own search through the Academy of Certified Archivists

 

Other sources for learning more about collections and repository guidelines:

 

Archives of Australia

 

Australian Society of Archivists, Inc.

 

International Council on Archives (ICA)

 

International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA)

 

Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS)

 

LBGT Religious Archives Network: Repository Roster

 

National Archives, United States

 

National Library of Scotland

 

National Union Catalog of Manuscript Collections, Library of Congress

 

The University of Auckland: Collection Development Policy

 

The University of Queensland: Collection Development Policy

 

 

Other sources:

 

Veterans History Project, Library of Congress/American Folklife Center, 101 Independence Ave. SE, Washington DC 20540-4615

 

Library of Congress: Story Corps

 

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