The British Museum: King of Thieves
Museums are a crucial part of our society, preserving and displaying artifacts that help us understand and appreciate different cultures and histories. They bring history, art, and culture to life, and provide valuable resources for education and research. The British Museum is a great example of this, with a collection spanning over two million years […]
Why It’s Crucial to Get Digitization Right the First Time
These days, it’s all digital! Preserving personal and public history like the items included in so many family collections through digitization not only ensures that some form survives into the future, but makes that history accessible, researchable, and shareable. From cherished photographs to invaluable documents, these materials tell your family’s unique story and safeguard your […]
Exploring the Contrast Between Physical and Digital Document Archiving
Archives are windows to the past. They can provide evidence, explanations, and context that help us understand past actions and inform the future. Archaeologists have uncovered archives composed of clay tablets that date back to the Bronze Age. These discoveries have been instrumental in the study of ancient languages, literature, and politics. The practice of […]
Building on the Busch Family Legacy
Anyone familiar with St. Louis’s history knows the impact the Busch family has on this region. Grant’s Farm, Busch Stadium, and the Anheuser-Busch Clydesdales are some of the hallmarks of living under the Arch’s shadow, and St. Louis wouldn’t be the same without this historical family’s influence. However, when family legacies get distilled into the […]
It’s Time to Archive All Your Documents Digitally
By Digital Archivist Alyssa Voss With the digital age making content and media more prevalent, the physical world of information and research has evolved in similar ways. While traditional document archiving will always be the established standard, there is no denying that digital document archiving is more necessary than ever. This new process has developed […]
ROT and Prioritizing Materials for Digitization
By Digital Archivist Alyssa Voss When planning to digitize a collection, it’s important to suppress the urge to jump right in and scan everything. Not all items are created equal; some may be more fragile or rare, while others may have greater historical or cultural significance. Prioritizing the materials in your collection can help you […]
The Dow Foundation Archives: Cultivating Historical Context
Archivists are often eager to illustrate the one-of-a-kind perspective their collection presents. Artifacts like postcards, candid photos, and personal correspondence offer a way to tell previously untold stories about our origins. However, historical archives not only provide a peek into the past, but they also offer new context around the histories we think we know. […]
Finding Harmony in the Past
By Junior Digital Archivist Alyssa Voss Imagine discovering boxes of your loved one’s manuscripts and documents you never knew about until after they passed. Going through a late loved one’s belongings can be a daunting and emotional task. It stirs up memories and feelings long forgotten. Finding items you never knew about, like boxes filled […]
Crashing Through the Surface
By Junior Digital Archivist Alyssa Voss At Anderson Archival, the term surface has a slightly different meaning than it does in most industries. The word surface is typically defined as “the outer layer of something.” While that remains true, in the archival community, it also refers specifically to the number of surfaces requiring a scan […]
Why Outsource? Digitizing In-House vs. Outsourcing
By Team Lead Andrea Glazer It can be tempting to see the photocopier in the corner of your office and imagine digitizing your collection over time, if only to avoid the costs associated with finding a vendor to handle it. However, in-house digitization is rarely that simple. Digital preservation is no longer the future of […]
