Supplemental to Week 1 Preserving Newspaper
As a requirement for my practicum,(an assignment by the staff), I had to research how to archive and preserve newspapers as well as research to see what is more in line with today's archives. Save all newspapers, some newspapers, or clip and scan.
Preservation of Newspapers- Archival Style
There are a few sources that offer some valuable insight into the preservation of newspaper; however, almost all refer to the Library of Congress’s online page “Collection Care: Preservation Measures for Newspapers”. While the most important step is to separate the newspapers from other items in the repository, due to their acidity, it is crucial to make sure that the papers are stored in a room that has low humidity. They should also be kept away from heat sources, and have minimal exposure to all kinds of light, primarily direct natural light. Placing newspapers in the proper container, such as acid and lignin free buffer folders and flat boxes is ideal if the physical newspapers are to be kept.
What to save and what to scan.
Yes, in the ideal world, it would be great to preserve all the newspapers that are received, but there are times that space dictates what can be saved and what cannot. If the newspaper has significant historical or sentimental value, protect and preserve the complete newspaper by the methods listed earlier. If budget allows, the archive can even contact an archive preservation specialist. If the paper does not meet these two standards (historical or sentimental) or only has a few articles, it is ok to photocopy, scan to digitalize or cut out the sections. The critical step is when articles are removed from a newspaper, it is highly recommended to notate the name of the paper, the date, and the section and page, so that a finding aid can be entirely and accurately filled out. This is done to assist fellow researchers with any search request they might have.
Sources:
https://www.archives.gov/preservation/holdings-maintenance/newspaper.html
https://www.loc.gov/preservation/care/newspap.html
Preserving | Archivally Storing Old Newspapers. (2017, July 24). Retrieved February 01, 2018, from https://www.archivalmethods.com/blog/storing-old-newspapers/
