1. Tours for groups of six or more during the week can be arranged
Hello my name is Kevin Smith, Archivist at the Bromfield Depot Museum. We are open…
Please remember to grab gloves and pencils on your way in, make sure you have folder
Broomfield Depot Museum 2201 W 10th Ave Open Saturdays 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Tours for groups of six or more during the week can be arranged
call (303) or

2. Preserving Papers and Photographs
March 11, 2017
Mamie Doud Eisenhower Library
Kevin Smith
Archivist, Broomfield Depot Museum

3. What Family Papers and Photographs Do You Have?
[Group Activity – groups at each table (3 total) will share with each other all of the different types of things they have (Be specific!). Then, one person from each table will share a list of the different kinds of things the group has. Hand out large post its with markers. Will take the largest one at end, hang up. Go over different things we have.]

4. Goals for Today
Identify preservation issues with different types of material
Learn to handle and care for your family papers and photographs at home
Start planning how you will organize, store, and preserve your papers and photographs for the long term
Load one point at a time
Really think about what kind of potential deterioration problems our papers and photos might have so we can better address them for long term preservation
Find ways that you can care for things in the best way possible, with what you have at your disposal. You may not be a museum or archive, but there’s still a lot you can do.
Going over different types of material and supplies you can use to care for your papers and photos. Importance of differentiating what’s good to use and what’s not.

5. Common Types of Damage

6. The Ten Agents of Deterioration
Physical Force
Theft/Vandalism
Neglect
Fire
Water
Pests
Chemical Deterioration
Light
Temperature
Humidity
Load in List. Briefly show and list off – don’t linger here for long. Maybe sentence long explanation of each AT MOST

7. Common Types of Damage Papers Tears, folds, rolling (Physical)
Mold, foxing, warping, cockling
(Water, High Humidity)
Brittle, crumbling
(Low Humidity)
Yellowing, fading (Chemical, Light)
Dirt, bugs, portions eaten (Neglect, Pests)
Read through each, load one at a time. Associate with agent.

8. Pest damage, tears, and possible acid damage and foxing
Image obtained from Smithsonian’s Postal Museum Blog,
Pest damage, tears, and possible acid damage and foxing

9. Common Types of Damage Photograph Prints
Tears, folds, rolling (Physical)
Mold, foxing, warping, cockling
(Water, High Humidity)
Brittle, crumbling (Low Humidity)
Yellowing, Fading (Chemical, Light)
Silver Mirroring and Ferrotyping
(High Humidity, Temperature, Chemical)
Flaking/Cracking Image Surface (Low Humidity)
Read through, one at a time (each point will load separately. First 4 load at once, same as papers). Explain ten agent association.

10. Image obtained from graphicsatlas.org
Cracking Emulsion

11. Silver Mirroring Ferrotyping
Images obtained from Graphicsatlas.org

12. Common Types of Damage Scrapbooks
Missing binding, torn pages (Physical)
Items falling out or loose (Physical, Neglect)
Old glue (Chemical)
Yellowing or fading items (Chemical)
Load each point, but go over quickly, relating to agents.

13. Handling

14. Handling First Step: Stop and Look
Check for any damage and weak points
Brittle Paper
Folded Corners
Loose Binding/Cover
Cracking Surface
Wet
Rolled or Flat
Check for safety hazards
Staples and Pins
Heavy Weight
Broken Glass
Mold
Noxious Fumes
Load each portion individual portion

15. Handling Second Step: Take Precautions
Use Gloves (especially for photos)
Only use #2 Pencils
Work over flat, clean, smooth, and steady surface
No Food, Drinks, or Other Mess Makers
Don’t Work in Direct Sunlight
Load each point. Explain each one
Point out gloves from “freebie bag”, pencils

16. Handling Step 3: Handle with Care Handle items with both hands
Handle papers and photos by edges
Avoid handling by corners, fasteners, or binding
Make sure heavier items are supported from the bottom, not hanging
Try to Keep Large Items Flat
If binding is frayed, try to cradle
Handle items over a surface, sitting down. Try not to handle too much while standing
Load each point individually
Demonstrate how to handle, near front of class so everyone can see:
Handle paper sheet with fold, demonstrate for first three points
Handle scrapbook next three points
Last point applies to all

17. Handling Step 3 Cont. Use Gloves with Photos
Pull Sleeves, not Photos or Papers Inside
Check Rolled Photos Before Unfurling
Load points individually
Put on gloves handle a photo
Demonstrate moving photo in/out of a sleeve
Show rolled photo as example. This one is okay, but think back to cracking emulsion

18. Handling Step 4: Moving Have a Destination First
Use Both Hands, Keep Supported
Keep Item(s) Flat
Get Help With Moving and Supporting
Load each point individually

19. Storage
We’ve established how to handle items safely while we sift through them, now how do we store them? What kind of material can we use, and what works best for certain kinds of material?

20. Building Room Material Folder
Storage
Building Room Material Folder
Different levels of envelopes – each provide support, padding, and barrier for your papers and photos.
Breakdown list – house, room in house, box you store things in, folder or envelope you store things in, etc.

21. Storage Choose the right room Issues with Basements and Attics
68° F to 75° F (do not exceed), below 60% RH
Be wary of pipes, vents, windows, cleaners/chemicals
Don’t leave on floor!
Shelving, Cabinets, and Tables
Load each point individually
Basements more wet. Attics more dry. Both can have fluctuating temperatures and humidity.
Ideal range, stay clear of 75 or higher
Examples: water pipes, heating vent, hot water heater, direct sunlight
Water can damage things on floor, can get dirty. Make sure room has table, shelf, etc. to use.
Wood can off gas, metal can rust. Might consider plastic shelving or table. Can place items on mylar sheets. Cabinets should not be airtight – might consider avoiding.

22. Storage Material Yes Acid Free Folders/Boxes No General Office Folders
Versus buffered
Lignin Free Folders/Boxes
Photographic Activity Test (PAT)
Mylar, Polypropylene, Polyethylene for Plastics
Number 4 and 5 Recyclable No
General Office Folders
Cardboard Boxes
Wooden or Metal Boxes
PVCs, Polyurethane for Plastics
Adhesives
Explain difference between acid free and buffered – might avoid with certain color photos, or other types. Also anything with protein – leather example
Explain break down of lignen in paper
Color – can run
No adhesives – stickies, sticky pages, etc.
PVCs – sometimes hard to tell. Rainbow sheen a giveaway.
Explain PAT, Image Permanence Institute
After explaining everything breifly, jump to items in “freebie bag”. Show items not to use, too.

23. Exercise – Ph Pens
On each table there are special ph pens, which can be used to tell if something is acidic. If the mark is yellow, then what you are marking is acidic. If it is pink, then it is not. In your table’s group, go ahead and mark the boxes, folders, and sleeve pages in front of you to see what would work best as material for your storage needs.

24. Storage Material Papers Scrapbook
Use folders, usually store vertically
Do not over or under stuff
Consider envelopes/sleeves for smaller items in a folder
Do not fold or roll papers
Scrapbook
Always keep flat
Consider interleaving for newspaper pages
Check for loose material
Keep in original order
Load each section individually
Show lines on folder for folding, stress importance of support. Envelopes also good for newspaper clippings.
Books – binding, cover condition indicator. Shelf – make sure its supported. Flat storage in box or book jacket, supported.
Scrapbooks – tips for making or keeping together
Use adhesive corners, not adhesive on actual items.
Photocopy or photograph if absolutely have to dismantle a scrapbook.

25. Storage Photo Prints Do not use adhesive pages
Plastic sleeves, envelopes, folders. Make sure its supported
Sleeves, unless: Photo is flaking, missing surface
Envelopes, beware of seams
Avoid buffered material, stick with acid free
Separate negatives
Load each section individually
Allude to example of bad sleeves to use
Advantages of sleeves – can see, handle without incident, gives good support. Folders provide good storage in a box. Allude to goody bag
Explain static with flaking emulsion
Explain buffering – avoid with blueprints/cyanotypes, albumen prints, color prints

26. Organization and Arrangement
So now that we have dealt with the what to store our photos and papers in, we’re going to conclude briefly with how to organize and arrange our papers and photos.

27. Organization and Arrangement
Why It’s Important
Helps for future reference, and getting the most out of your collection
Avoids unnecessary handling and sifting, helps to preserve papers
Preserves information – correlations, sources, ownership, etc.
It may not seem important, but organizing your these things can help tremendously.

28. Questions to Ask
Were these documents or photographs already organized?
Do these items seem to belong together?
Are there common formats?
Are there common subjects?
Is there a chronological order?
If organization is lacking, how would I file this?
Load points individually
Give examples:
Grandpa’s trunk of World War II memorabilia; photos in same envelope
Box with mother’s and father’s side of family – may logically separate
Formats – letters, photos, books, etc.
Dates – group of letters, photos, etc.

29. Labeling
Use #2 Pencil
Clearly Label All File Folders and Boxes with Content Description, Dates
For Photos
Only write on back, never on image
Write on hard, smooth surface
Don’t write too hard
Include information on names, dates, locations, etc.
Keep information on original enclosures
Make photocopies
Keep negatives
Load each point

30. Exercise – Look at Organized Collections

31. Questions?