"31 Days of Tips from The Archive Lady"

DAY #24

Preserving the Family Bible

One of the most precious items genealogists have in their records collection is the Family Bible. This family heirloom is one that is most cherished and can contain the family history. The one-of-a-kind pages with handwritten names and dates help genealogists with their genealogy research but also reminds us of the ancestors that wrote those pages. Preserving the Family Bible is essential to preserving family history.

Family Bible donated to the Houston County, TN. Archives

Preserving a Family Bible Can Be Done in 5 Easy Steps:  

1. Transcribe the information contained on the pages in the Family Bible. This step needs to be done so that once the Bible has been stored away and preserved, it doesn't get handled and risk damage.

2. Digitize all pages that contain any genealogical information.  This can be done by using a flat bed scanner, a hand held scanner or taking digital photographs. If the Bible is fragile, be very careful what technique is used.

Bible Page with Genealogical Information

3. Place archival tissue paper between the pages that have writing on them. This will insure that none of the writing bleeds onto the other pages.

4. Put the Family Bible in an archival box that is lined with archival tissue paper. Be sure the box is not too small and not too big. To make sure the Bible doesn't move around in the box, crumple up archival tissue paper and put it around the Bible. The Bible will fit snuggly and won't move.  

5. Store in a cool, dry and dark place. Handle the Bible as little as possible.

German Bible Donated to the Houston County, TN. Archives

Here is a listing of the archival materials needed to preserve a Family Bible:

Archival Tissue Paper: http://amzn.to/2dqyWbt

Archival Storage Box: http://amzn.to/2duP4Yb

REMEMBER: IT'S NOT ALL ONLINE, CONTACT OR VISIT AN ARCHIVE TODAY!

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Scrapbooks! Do You Know How to Archive Them?

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Masonic Records in the Archives

"31 Days of Tips from The Archive Lady"

DAY #23

Masonic Records in the Archives

One of the most interesting records collections and one that I get more requests in the Houston County, Tennessee Archives are Masonic Records. The Masonic Lodge has been a staple of a lot of local communities and a lot of genealogists seek out these types of records.

New Providence Lodge, No. 128 F.& A.M. Request for Widow's Aid, located at the Houston County, Tennessee Archives

Masonic Records are normally donated by individuals and the collections can contain just about anything from documents, letters, photographs, meeting minutes, newspaper clippings and lodge publications just to name a few. They are a great resource for the genealogist trying to find information about the ancestors who were members of these groups. 

Powder Spring Lodge, No. 579 F. & A.M. Building Fund Help Letter, located at the Houston County, Tennessee Archives

These records could be held locally at a county archive, historical/genealogical societies and libraries. Most of the time they are archived by the name of the lodge, for example New Port Lodge #208 Records Collection. They can also be held at the state level at a state archive or a state historical/genealogical society. The Masonic organizations themselves have websites and archives of their very own that could hold records.

Mineral Springs Lodge, No. 533, F. & A.M., Mortgage Aid Help Letter, located at the Houston County, Tennessee Archives

Most of these records will be located in the Manuscript Collections of an archive. When a specific collection of interest is found, be sure and ask to see the Finding Aid. The Finding Aid will have great information about what is in the collection at the folder level. Not every piece of paper will be cataloged but you should be able to get an idea of what is in the collection and then the folders of interest can be requested.

New Portland Lodge No. 208, 100th Anniversary Pamphlet ca. 1951, located at the Houston County, Tennessee Archives

If you have never searched for your ancestors Masonic Records, now might be a good time to seek them out!

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Vertical Files...What Are They?

"31 Days of Tips from The Archive Lady"

DAY #22

Vertical Files...What Are They?

In the movie Forrest Gump, actor Tom Hanks playing Forrest Gump says "Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what your going to get".

In the archives world it can be said "Vertical files are like a box of chocolates, you never know what your going to get".

Vertical files or Subject files as they are sometimes called can be located in most state and local archives, historical society collections, genealogical society collections, libraries and in some museum collections.  What exactly are vertical files? 

Vertical files are a collection of documents and ephemera that are put in file folders which are then put in filing cabinets and cataloged by surname or subject.  These files could contain just about anything that can fit into a file folder.  Most repositories will create an index by the title on each folder but most of the time what is inside of each folder is not cataloged. Vertical files are sometimes seen as a "catch all" or a "hodgepodge" for all those documents that don't really go anywhere else but should not be discarded.

Vertical file drawer in the Houston County, Tennessee Archives

Genealogists should be encouraged to ask the archive if they have vertical files. These collections of records could be very valuable for genealogy research. Some archives don't always advertise that they have a collection of vertical files, so it's important that the researcher ask the archivist specifically about this collection. 

Usually you will have to request the files that you would like to look at and the archivist will retrieve them and bring them to you, sometimes only one or two files at a time. Then you will be allowed to go through what is contained in the file and make copies of what is important.  Once you have finished with the file, give it back to the archivist who will then bring other files that have been requested one or two at a time.

            Contents of Parker Surname Vertical File at the Houston County, TN. Archives

Next time you are at your local archive, ask if they have vertical files "you never know what you are going to get".



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Preserving Old Family Letters

"31 Days of Tips from The Archive Lady"

DAY #20

Preserving Old Family Letters

Stationary, envelopes, postage stamps....what am I describing? Yes, an old fashioned, handwritten letter.

Handwritten letter from Mattie to Miss Alice Reynolds dated October 25, 1903.
Located at the Houston County, Tennessee Archives

Today, most of us write emails, Tweets, Facebook posts and texts to communicate with our family and friends. When was the last time you sat down and wrote an actual handwritten letter and mailed it to someone? This type of genealogy record source is what I call a "rare genealogical record source" because while the old letters still exist there are practically no new records of this type being produced.

As genealogists, what do we do with these old letters that we have in our family collections? We preserve and archive them!

Before the actual physical archiving starts, I always encourage genealogists to scan or digitize their letters and to transcribe them word for word, that way once you have physically archived them you don't need to handle them as much. Handling them with your hands can cause damage over time if the items are handled a lot.

Original envelope for letter by Miss Mary Carpenter with post mark of December 17, 1889, Erin, Tennessee.
Located at Houston County, Tennessee Archives

When archiving old letters, it is important to keep the original envelope with the letter if it has been saved. There is valuable genealogical information on the envelope that you want to save. My advice is to remove the letter from the envelope, flatten the letter and put both the letter and the envelope into an archival polyester sleeve or into an archival page protector. Store them in an archival file folder or in a 3-ring binder and keep in a dry, dark place where it is preferably as cold as possible. Heat and humidity can destroy your documents, so it is always a good idea to store your records in a cold environment.

Now, how do you find old letters in archives, libraries or any of our wonderful repositories that hold genealogical records? This task can be a bit difficult but if you are diligent you might just get rewarded.

Most old letters will be found in Manuscript Collections. These collections of records are usually arranged by subject, surname or with titles such as "John Doe Papers 1871-1922". Once you have identified a collection that interests you, then you need to look at the finding aid. The finding aid is a document that is produced by the archivist and is an outline of what the collection is all about and will include a list of what is contained in each box. Most of the time the box list is not detailed by what each piece of paper is in each folder but rather it will say "Folder #1: Correspondence 1871-1888". You will have to open the file and read through the correspondence to see if there is anything of interest to your research.

Greeting card with letter sent to Mrs. W.T. Smith of Erin, Tennessee dated 1919.  Notice how small this letter is next to this cell phone. Located in the Houston County, Tennessee Archives

Lastly, let's not forget postcards! Our ancestors were avid users of postcards of all kinds. The preservation methods described earlier in this blog can be used with postcards. Also, postcards will be found in Manuscript Collections the same as old letters. Postcards come in all shapes, sizes and kinds. There are even postcards made from photographs. If you are looking for a photograph of your ancestor, just maybe there is one out there that is on a postcard. 

Postcard to Master Marshall W. Wynns in Erin, Tennessee from L.F.J.

        Located in the Houston County, Tennessee Archives

While the art of letter writing is no longer in fashion, we as genealogists have an opportunity to peer into our ancestors lives by reading their wonderful letters. The information that could be contained on our ancestors letters help us to put "meat on the bones" of the ones we are researching and helps their story come alive!


REMEMBER: IT'S NOT ALL ONLINE, CONTACT OR VISIT AN ARCHIVE TODAY!


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Preserving Old Family Letters: Tips From an Archives

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Tips for Small Storage Spaces

"31 Days of Tips from The Archive Lady"

DAY #19

Tips for Small Storage Spaces

Let's face it, as genealogists we can collect a lot of "stuff"! Even if we try to digitize all that we can and do away with as much paper as we can, we sill have genealogy "stuff".

Lyle Family Records Collection, Houston County, TN. Archives

A storage space tip that I can give you is to use nesting boxes. In fact, Gaylord Archival has produced a NEW line of nesting boxes that are great for small spaces.

Nesting boxes are smaller boxes that fit into a larger box. This way you can preserve several different items in small archival boxes and then nest those boxes into a standard archival storage carton.

Gaylord Archival Nesting Boxes

Now you can preserve your smaller family heirlooms in their own box but yet fit these nesting boxes into one large box that fits nicely on a shelf in your closet where it is cool, dark and dry, just the right climate conditions to preserve such items.

Each box is sold separately so you can mix and match box sizes or choose multiples of the same size box to suit the needs of your collection. Once you have filled the smaller boxes you can then layer them as you would like into the large archival storage carton.

Gaylord Archival Nesting Boxes

You can purchase these very useful nesting boxes from their catalog on the
Gaylord Archival Website: http://www.gaylord.com/

Or you can purchase them from Amazon.com: https://amzn.to/2ynFwZV

I have chosen to use these nesting boxes for the Fenton Glass Shoes that I inherited from my Mom after her passing in June of 2017. I have 20 of them which I have wrapped each one with archival tissue paper and put each one in a separate nesting box. Once all the glass shoes have been boxed, I then put all the nesting boxes in the standard archival storage carton. These precious family heirlooms are now protected, preserved and in one box that stores very nicely on my closet shelf.

Fenton Glass Slippers

So, if you have a small space to store your family heirlooms, I would highly recommend Gaylord Archival's NEW Nesting Boxes!

Remember: It's Not All Online, Contact or Visit an Archive Today!!

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(Disclaimer: Gaylord Archival provided me with nesting boxes to try out for this blog post and review.)

Store Records in the Archives

"31 Days of Tips from The Archive Lady"

DAY #18

Store Records in the Archives

The Mercantile or sometimes called The General Store is where many of our ancestors shopped. There would have been so much to see in these kinds of stores. The penny candy on display in the candy jars, a barrel of crackers, the wheel of cheese and of course the caskets. Yes, I said caskets!

Wiseman & Sykes General Merchandise Letterhead, ca. 1933, Houston County, TN. Archives

Today, when we walk into the mall or our favorite grocery store we will most likely not see caskets for sale. But in the local mercantile, in the 1700's-1900's, it was common to see caskets on display and for sale. It was also common for the mercantile to be the local undertaker or funeral director. The mercantile letterhead would list as part of their services and product offerings "Funeral Director" or "Undertaker".

C.C. Cook & Company Letterhead, ca. 1921, Houston County, TN. Archives

This is why it is important to research the local businesses where our ancestors lived, especially the local mercantile or general store. These businesses generated store ledgers, piles of receipts, accounts payable records and even a record of who bought a casket for their dearly departed. These records could be in an archive, historical society, genealogical society, library or local museum.

Records for the local mercantile could list anything purchased at the store, including caskets. There could be invoices or receipts that specifically list fees for embalming, caskets, clothes to dress the deceased, etc. like this account receipt from the Sparkman General Merchandise Store. When searching for death information on an ancestor, these records could prove to be helpful.

E.P. Sparkman General Merchandise/Funeral Director account invoice, ca. 1939, Houston County, TN. Archives

Records for the local mercantile or general store will be located in either the Vertical Files Collections or the Manuscript Collections in an archive. Ask the archivist about the local stores in the area and if there are records available. The records for the local mercantile can be a gold mine for the genealogist.



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5 Steps to Preserving a Scrapbook

"31 Days of Tips from The Archive Lady"

DAY #17

5 Steps To Preserving A Scrapbook

Scrapbooks are a genealogists gold mine! If you ask anyone that knows me, they will tell you that my favorite record collection to do research in and to process in the archive is Scrapbooks!

Scrapbooks are like time capsules, nobody knows what will be found in them until they are opened. There are all kinds of styles of scrapbooks from newspaper clippings, obituary, diary, sports teams, personal history and many more.

Donated Scrapbooks, Houston County, TN. Archives

Maybe you have some scrapbooks that have been inherited from family members. Are they falling apart? Are the contents falling out? Scrapbooks are usually one of those record sources that are handled a lot over time because they are so interesting.

Preserving scrapbooks is actually fairly easy and any home archivist can do it. Here are 5 easy steps:

1. Digitize each and every page of the scrapbook. You can use a flat bed scanner or you can use your digital camera. Do not use any kind of self-feeding scanner or a hand held scanner, they can potentially damage the pages or the items pasted to the pages.Make sure to digitize the scrapbook in original order from the first page to the last page. 

2. Purchase archival tissue paper. Get a size that is about 1/4" to 1/2" larger than the scrapbook page. You want to make sure the tissue paper covers the entire page but there is not too much excess. You can cut the tissue paper to size if needed.

3. Interweaver the tissue paper in-between each and every page of the scrapbook. The tissue paper will act as a shield to protect anything on the pages from bleeding onto or damaging the other page.

Archival Tissue Paper Interweaved in the Scrapbook, Houston County, TN. Archives

4. Purchase an archival box that is as close to the size of the scrapbook as possible. Put the scrapbook in the box. If there is still room in the box and the scrapbook is sliding around, crumple up archival tissue paper and tuck it around the scrapbook to secure it in place so that it doesn't move.

Scrapbook in an Archival Box, Houston County, TN. Archives

5. Label the box with information about the scrapbook. For instance, "World War II Scrapbook, Belonged to John Jones, 1941-1945". Store in a cool, dry and dark place. Keep away from sunlight and handle the scrapbook as least as possible. Consult with the digital images as much as possible so that damage is not done to the original scrapbook.

These 5 easy steps to preserve scrapbooks will insure they will survive for many years to come.

REMEMBER: IT'S NOT ALL ONLINE, CONTACT OR VISIT AN ARCHIVE TODAY!!

**********

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