Document Preservation, Our Gift to the Future

The April meeting of BAGS covered a subject dear to the heart of any genealogist or historian -- preservation of materials. We all appreciate having access to records from years ago that have been carefully preserved through the forethought of previous generations. Though our focus tends to be much on the past, it is important that we also look toward the future and to those future generations who may one day benefit from materials we take the care to preserve today.

Teri is the president of Chaparral Genealogical Society in Tomball, TX, and is the historian for Perry Cemetery & Historical Association. She is very interested in cemetery preservation and documentation, assisting 80 small family cemeteries in NW Harris County with things such as locating unmarked graves, writing historical marker applications, and clarification of cemetery laws. Teri has even testified in Austin regarding the plight of our historic cemeteries in Texas. Along with Trevia Wooster Beverly, and the Harris County Historical Commission, Teri was instrumental in bringing together these cemeteries for the first Cemetery Symposium in NW Harris County. Teri and Trevia also taught a lecture series last year for the Houston Forum called The Day of Death.

Teri's personal interest in genealogy began upon her marriage to a fifth generation native of Cy-Fair, whose family settled the area. She is now a member of DAR and is eligible for Colonial Dames, U.S. Daughters of 1812, and the United Daughters of the Confederacy -- if she ever has enough free time to complete the application forms! Through her mother, who was born and raised in England, Teri is also eligible for the Daughters of the British Empire.

She shared information on how to preserve photos, papers, certificates, and more.

The presentation by Teri Little started with the following poem

The Strangers in the Box, By Pam Harazim

Come, look with me inside this drawer,

In this box I've often seen.

At the pictures, black and white,

Faces proud, still and serene.

I wish I knew the people,

These strangers in the box.

Their names and all their memories,

Are lost among the socks.

I wonder what their lives were like,

How did they spend their days.

What about their special times,

I'll never know their ways.

If only someone had taken time,

To tell who, what and when.

Those faces of my heritage

Would come to life again.

Could this become the fate

Of the pictures we take today?

The faces and the memories

Someday to be tossed away.

Make time to save your pictures.

Seize the opportunity when it knocks.

Or someday you and yours could be

The strangers in the box.

Email: dpharazim@cyberzone.net

Definitions

Acid: A substance that weakens the bonds of many materials, especially paper. It causes items to turn brown and become brittle over time. It is also capable of breaking down photographs. Acid can also be found in inks and adhesives.

(Plain manila folders and crayons do contain acid.)

Acid Migration: The transfer of acid from acidic materials to a less acidic material or pH-neutral materials. (Acid always migrates to neutral.)

Acid Free: pH value of 7.0 or higher. This indicates the absence of acid.

Archival Quality: The quality of being permanent and chemically stable, indicating that the product or material is safe for preservation.

Buffered Paper: Paper that has been made more alkaline to neutralize any acids that may touch it. Made with calcium carbonate which neutralizes acid and makes the pH more resistant to change. (Can cause a reaction with some photographs.)

Lignin: An organic substance found naturally in wood and plants. When broken down to make paper, the lignin fibers remain. Over time, they break down to make acid. (Most commonly found in newspaper.)

PVC: Polyvinyl Chloride. A substance found in some plastics and adhesives that can break down to form acids.

(Use items that contain polyethylene, polypropylene or

polyester, i.e., Mylar^TM . Mylar^TM is considered one of the best archival materials. It is used for archival envelopes and sheet protectors.)

Photo Safe: A term used loosely by industries to indicate that they believe their products are safe to use with photos. Be wary.

Basic Archival & Preservation Supplies:

Acid Free Paper

Buffered Paper

Acid Free adhesives (i.e., glue slicks, tape, photo corners and picture splits.)

Acid Free repair tape

Bone folder

Scissors

Comer Slot punches

Archival envelopes

Archival spray

PVC free page protectors

Acid Free pens or markers

Acid free boxes or albums

Document Cleaning Pad

Archival & Preservation Suppliers:

Metal Edge

www.metaledgeinc.com

800-862-2228

Brodart Library Supplies

www.brodart.com

888-820-4377

Texas Art Supply:

2001 Montrose 713-526-5221

2237 South Voss 713-780-0440

The Container Store

Any store that carries basic Scrapbooking supplies will have the basics such as paper, adhesives, etc.

Extras & Scrapbooking Supplies

X-Acto^Tm Knife

Cutting Pad (For use with X-Acto^Tm Knife)

Rotary Cutter and decorative blades

Different types of scissors

Paper cut outs

Stickers

Various types of papers

Embellishments, i.e., ribbons, lace, fabric, lace doilies.

Novelty punches (For those who have limited. hand strength, there are presses available on the market in which the punch can be inserted. If your punch sticks, try punching it with wax paper.)

Circle cutters

Suppliers: Hobby Lobby, Michaels, Walmart, Garden Ridge,

and independently owned scrapbook stores.

Suggested Reading Heritage Scrapbooks, By Creating Keepsakes Magazine.

Portraits from the Past, By Laurie Capener,

Published by Keeping Memories Alive.

Crafting your own Heritage Album, By Bev

By Betterway Books.

Creating Keepsakes, Joy of Scrapbooking, By Lisa

Published by Oxmoor House, Inc. and Leisure Arts,

Inc.

www.creatingkeepsakes.com

Archiving & Scrapbooking 101

Rules of Thumb

The most important thing to remember is to do no harm. While you should take every precaution you can, realize there is a limit to what you can do. Do not be afraid to call a professional.

Photocopy Machines: At the current time, the only type of photocopies that are archival safe are those that use dry toner. Ink jet is not considered archival safe. (Remember, copies should be made on acid free paper.

CD Storage: The lifespan of information stored on a CD at this time is estimated to be ten years.

Photographs: The biggest enemies of photographs are light, humidity, excessive heat or cold, dust, acid and the oils from your hands during handling.

To have top quality copies made of antique photos, take them to a photographer and have them make a negative so that prints may be made.

Some copy centers will not allow you to put photo paper in their machines.

When photocopying old black and white photos, copy them using color rather than black and white.

If you want to scrapbook old photos, use copies. Never, never crop an old photo.

Attach photos to paper with photo corners or comer slots. Do not apply adhesives directly to the photo.

Slides can be taken to most photo developers and turned into good quality prints.

When writing on the backs of photos, use a pen that is acid free, smear resistant, waterproof and light resistant.

Loose photos should be kept in acid free protectors, envelopes, albums or boxes.

Never use a magnetic album. To remove photos stuck in these old albums, use dental floss to get them out. If this method fails, take have either a negative made of them, or have a color copy made.

Computerized Scrapbooking Programs:

While these can be a wonderful time saver and a creative way to preserve memories, use sparingly.

Remember, unless you have a dry toner printer, the ink is not archival safe.

Use your own handwriting, your descendants will thank you.

Memorabilia: Use pockets, pages or shadow boxes designed to hold or display larger items.

Some items such as family bibles are safest stored in acid free boxes.

Lamination: While lamination makes an item sturdy and

protects it from tearing and fingerprints, it is not reversible.

The jury is still out as to whether or not this is a safe method of preservation.

This process should never be used on one of

a kind or rare and precious documents, use copies instead.

Make sure that the type of plastic used is not PVC.

Cold lamination is safer than hot.

If you are going to laminate an item, make sure you have de-acidified it first.

Encapsulation: Provides protection and durability.

Protects against deterioration from handling, moisture and acid migration.

This process is reversible. This is perfect for items that are one of a kind, or of heirloom quality.

Companies such as Metal Edge sell preassembled encapsulation units.

Archiving & Preservation Steps

Clean

Repair

De-Acidify

Preserve

Telling your Unique Family Story

Take the time to document your life, one day, we too will be someone's ancestors!.

KISS: Keep it simple stupid. Do not allow the supporting cast (slickers, etc.) to take the attention away from the story you are trying to tell.

Include any family or holiday traditions you may have. Explain how they came into being.

Explain how your family names were chosen, i.e., are they passed down from generation to generation, or were you named for someone special.

Don't forget to document the hard times, there are often a defining moment in a family's history.

Don't forget to take the time today to make beautiful memories with your loved ones.

Getting the Kids Involved

Children love to play with brightly colored stickers, markers, punches and papers.

Turn them loose and let them write their own history books, with them as the lead character. One day, when they are all grown up, they will thank you for taking the time.

Try this experiment. Give the child some copies of old photographs and tell them a short summary of the story behind it. Ask them to scrapbook it in their own words. You might be surprised with what they come up with.