Archives and Records Management: Tomaro Taylor and Gail Donovan Society of Florida Archivists Florida Gulf Coast ARMA Chapter Event St. Petersburg, FL 20 March 2012 A Long History

1884: Historians split from the ASSA to form the AHA Whither Archivists and Records Managers? 1934: Congress passes a bill to create a National Archives of the United States In 1889, an Act of Congress incorporates the AHA “for the promotion of historical studies, the collection and preservation of historical manuscripts and for kindred purposes in the interest of American history and of history in America.” From , National Archives staff identify… 3 million cu. ft. of records 4 million running ft. of film millions of negatives and maps They also uncover inconsistent filing methods, poor storage environments, unsupervised records creation and duplication, and bad recordkeeping practices. 1939: Records Disposal Act 1936: SAA emerges from AHA 1948: Presentation of Leahy Report : GSA Federal Records Act 1955: Records management groups in Chicago, Detroit, Minneapolis, Cleveland, Milwaukee, New York and Los Angeles merged to form ARMA 2005 Adapted from Scanlan, K.A. “ARMA v. SAA: The history and heart of professional friction.” The American Archivist, 74(Fall/Winter2011):

Archives and Archives Management

Archivists … appraise, acquire, arrange, describe, preserve and ensure access to records of enduring value provide intellectual and physical control of materials in accordance with archival standards engage in outreach activities and donor relations

An Archivist’s Life Librarian & Archivist: collect, preserve, and make accessible materials for research; but significant differences exist in the way these materials are arranged, described, and used. Records Manager & Archivist: the records manager controls vast quantities of institutional records, most of which will eventually be destroyed, while the archivist is concerned with relatively small quantities of records deemed important enough to be retained for an extended period.” The work of an archivist is related to, but distinct from, that of certain other professionals. Adapted from The Society of American Archivists’ “So You Want to Be an Archivist: An Overview of the Archives Profession.”

“State-of-the-art automation will never beat the wastebasket when it comes to speeding up efficiency in the office.” Ann Landers, Gem of the Day, July 27, 1994

The Life Cycle of an Archives Professional Education Training Career Continuing Education Benefits Challenges

Professional Organizations Founded in Serves educational and informational needs of individuals and institutions. Provides leadership to ensure the identification, preservation and use of records of historical value. Founded in Independent, nonprofit certifying organization of professional archivists who demonstrate continuing professional commitment beyond education and experience. Founded in Dedicated to the dissemination of information about historical records and about sound archival methodology.

“Time present and time past Are both perhaps present in time future, And time future contained in time past. If all time is eternally present All time is unredeemable.” -T. S. Eliot

Thank you... Tomaro Taylor, Gail Donovan, Society of Florida Archivists, archivists.org/ archivists.org/