Articles

Processing Extremely Large Collections of Historical Photographs

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Abstract

The photo-archivist frequently encounters large collections to which traditional item-oriented processing techniques are poorly suited. The author draws on his experience with projects at the Sacramento History Center (1,000,000 negatives from a newspaper photo morgue) and at the California State Railroad Museum (100,000 photographic images, mostly prints) to discuss an overall approach to the appraisal and weeding, arrangement and description, and conservation of large photo collections. He discusses appropriate division and specialization of labor on such projects and argues that "something is better than nothing" in improving access.

How to Cite:

Norris, T. D., (1985) “Processing Extremely Large Collections of Historical Photographs”, Archival Issues 10(2), 129–134. doi: https://doi.org//archivalissues.10458