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ARCHIVAL RESEARCH

WHAT IS AN ARCHIVE?
An archive is a collection of materials and artefacts.

Archival materials are often unpublished and are
preserved for their intrinsic of research value.

Archival materials might be paper documents, but
could also be less conventional historical artefacts.
TYPES OF ARCHIVES
College and university archives
Corporate archives
Government archives
Historical societies
Museums
Religious archives
Special collections
WHY SHOULD YOU VISIT AN ARCHIVE?
Archives offer you a unique chance to do research
based upon primary source materials.

Using archives will ground your research in a
particular historical context and could move an
existing project in new directions.
WHY ARCHIVAL RESEARCH?
Archival research refers to research conducted
using data that a researcher had no part in
collecting.

The researcher simply examines or selects the data
for analysis from these sources.

Archival research is employed when data already
exists, and collecting new data would be wasteful.
WHY NOT ARCHIVAL RESEARCH?
Most archival data are collected for non-scientific
reasons.

Because archival research is carried out after the
fact, ruling out alternative hypotheses for particular
observed correlations may be difficult.

WHERE SHOULD YOU START?
Always refer to the archives website before visiting.

Archives differ from libraries in several important
ways, necessitating advanced planning and
preparation.
REQUESTING MATERIALS
Requesting materials from archives is different from
requesting materials from libraries.

An archival collection is usually not physically
accessible to patrons to browse. Most archival
collections are stored at a secure location until a
researcher requests to see them.
REQUESTING MATERIALS
Since archival materials are housed in a secure
area, only archives staff members have access to
them.

You can go to the archives physically and ask the staff to
retrieve the materials for you in person.
You can email or call the archives ahead of time and request
to see the materials at a future date.
REQUESTING MATERIALS
Sometimes materials are housed in secure
locations farther away from the physical archives.

When requesting the materials, it is important to
give the archives staff a specific description of the
materials you would like to view.
VISITING AN ARCHIVE
Most archives will require you to complete a
registration form before you can enter and begin
working with their collections.

Check their website or call ahead to find out what
forms of ID you should bring with you.
ARCHIVE ETIQUETTE
Every archive has a centralized reading room in
which you can browse the materials you requested.

In terms of noise, please be courteous of your fellow
researchers.
Familiarize yourself with the procedures for handling archives
materials.
Some archives allow you to take photographs of archival
materials for research purposes.
If you wish to make photocopies or take photographs of an
item, ask an archivist for permission first.
HANDLING MATERIALS
Archival materials are collected and housed in
archives because they are rare and unique.

If archival materials are damaged, the historical
content that they contain may be lost forever.
HANDLING MATERIALS
DO NOT eat or drink while using archival materials.
DO use a pencil when taking notes for research.
DO keep your notes and archival materials separate.
DO write down information about the location of materials you
are using, such as the box and folder number.
DO NOT place anything on the materials that might damage
them.
DO NOT rearrange materials in folders or boxes.
DO NOT remove any materials from the archives.
CITING MATERIALS
In-text: (Last name, Year)
Bibliography: Last name, F. N. (Year). Title. Format,
Location.

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