Poster

Seed to Blossom: Cultivating Order from Oversized Collection Chaos

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Abstract

From May 2022 to December 2023 a coworker and I worked to organize and inventory our library's oversized collection. We began this project due to a need for an inventory of the oversized archival collection, and to reduce the footprint needed to store the oversized collection. Our project’s objective was to identify what was in the library’s oversized collection and organize, inventory, and potentially deaccession any items that did not fit within the library’s collections. Some stages of the project were worked on independently with guidance from my coworker, DiAnna. In other stages, we worked together or separately. This project started with deframing. The library had various oversized inventoried items that had to be deframed, labeled, and organized. After deframing, we sorted the items by size. Smaller items remained in the primary storage room for placement into record boxes. The larger items were moved to the library’s reading room and sorted into map case files. Items were originally organized by subject, such as university buildings, colleges, etc. However, the organizing method changed from subject-based to location-number-based to maximize space and allow for future growth. This project involved work from people at multiple skill levels; the project poster will be helpful and educational to those of any skill set or experience. This project involved work from people at two skill levels: someone with limited experience working in special collections and a mid-career archivist. The project poster is helpful and educational to those of any skill set or experience and teaches the audience techniques related to inventorying, storing oversized items, and potential workflow ideas.

How to Cite:

Nordman, M., (2024) “Seed to Blossom: Cultivating Order from Oversized Collection Chaos ”, MAC Annual Meeting Presentations 2024(1).