Appraisal and Acquisition

Book excerpt: Appraisal and Acquisition: Innovative Practices for Archives and Special Collections explores how archivists and special collections librarians in organizations of different sizes and types have approached the challenges of collection, as well as exploring opportunities to acquire new kinds of materials and conduct thoughtful reappraisal. The case studies featured are “No Fame Required”: Collaboration, Community, and the Georgia LGBTQ Archives Project Placed Out: Providing a Home for the Records of the Children’s Aid Society and the Orphan Trains “I Really Can’t Wait to Archive this Exchange”: Exploring Processing as Appraisal in the Tim Kaine Email Project Hardware for SoftPoems: Appraisal and Acquisition of Vintage Computer Equipment From Projects to Policy: The Evolution of a Systematic Reappraisal Program Terabytes from Far-Off Lands: Acquiring Records of the Ford Foundation International Fellowships Program So Much to Do, So Little Time: Prioritizing To Acquire Significant University Records The Studio Theatre Archives: Staging an Embedded Appraisal Making the Bulb Want to Change: Implementing an Active Electronic Records Appraisal and Acquisition Program Weaving the Web of Influence: Maximizing Archival Appraisal and Acquisition through the Use of “Spider Advocates” Reappraisal and Deaccessioning: Building for the Future by Removing Some of the Past Tap into History: The Birth of the Oregon Hops and Brewing Archives These case studies show a range of strategies and processes, but all were selected because they demonstrate ideas that could be transferred into many other settings. They can serve as models, sources of inspiration, or starting points for new discussions. This volume will be useful to those working in archives and special collections as well as other cultural heritage organizations, and provides ideas ranging from those that require long-term planning and coordination to ones that could be more quickly implemented. The chapters also provide students and educators in archives, library, and public history graduate programs a resource for understanding the varieties of issues related to appraisal and acquisition and how they can be addressed.