Acquiring, appraising and accessioning

Acquiring

• Donations
• Be proactive, but avoid accepting items inappropriate to your archives policy
• Always complete a deed of gift form
• Name of the donor
• Name of the recipient archives
• Description of the material
• Conditions of deposit or access restrictions (if any)
• A statement including transfer of ownership (and copyright)
• Date of the acquisition
• Signatures of both the archivist and the donor

Deed of gift forms
Sample deed of gift forms:
Council of Nova Scotia Archives http://www.councilofnsarchives.ca/node/228

White Rock Museum Archives https://web.archive.org/web/20041121124212/http://aabc.bc.ca/aabc/wrdeedofgift.pdf

University of Victoria Libraries  http://www.uvic.ca/library/use/policies/col/howdoi/Arc_SC_Gift.pdf

Deed of gifts
Society of American Archivists. A Guide to Deeds of Gift  http://www2.archivists.org/publications/brochures/deeds-of-gift

Acquiring

• Transfer
• Ideally as part of an organization’s records management programme
• Sample transfer forms
• http://www.asc.ucalgary.ca/files/lcr_asc/file-transfer-form-2013.docx
• http://www.united-church.ca/files/forms/archives-transfer.pdf
• Loan
• Temporary: for a specific purpose, e.g. an exhibit or copying
• Keep accurate records of the receipt and return
• Complete a loan form and make sure the lender signs it twice, first when leaving the items and again indicating their return
• Indefinite: avoid if possible
• May not be able to arrange it, dispose of unwanted items, or provide access to it without permission from the owner
• Sample loan form
• http://web.archive.org/web/20090613013118/http://aabc.bc.ca/aabc/msa/3_sample_loan_form.htm
• Purchase
• Exception rather than rule
• Can be expensive
• If you are unsure of the monetary value of an item, have an outside agency appraise it before completing a purchase
• Always obtain a receipt for any purchases
Acquisition policies
Guidelines for Developing an Acquisitions Policy. http://aabc.ca/STORAGE/Toolkit_storage/Toolkit_files_old_linked/toolkit_guidelines_for_an_acquisition_policy.html

Library and Archives Canada. Acquisition and Donation of Private Records http://web.archive.org/web/20061010142450/http://www.collectionscanada.ca/01/0102_e.html

Nova Scotia Archives & Records Management. Archival Acquisition Policy.  http://novascotia.ca/archives/about/policies/acquisition.pdf 

Appraising

• Ask first: Is item worth accepting?
• Does it fall into acquisition policy?
• Will it need high maintenance?
• Appraisal criteria
• Administrative value
• Age
• Are there upkeep issues?
• Quantity
• How much?
• How much room will it take?
• Budget
• Type of material
• Resources
• invoices
• journal
• letter
• video
• does it need restoration?
• Uniqueness
• Not mass produced/published
• Physical quality
• Time span
• Accessibility
• Restrictions should enable people to use record at some point in time
• Use
• How often? 
• What for?
• Avoid making appraisal yourself.
• When appraising archival material, also consider the following:
• Does the archival material fit your policy and does it enhance the rest of the collection, or is it unsuitable and inappropriate?
• Does it fill gaps in your collection or duplicate information already available?
• How much will it cost to preserve and store, and is it worth the expense?
• Is the medium itself important, such as a photograph produced by a special process?
Reappraising

• Values and standards change with time
• Reappraisal of documents is also an important archival activity
Accessioning

• Each new item or group of items brought into the archives is a separate accession
• Give each separate accession an accession number
• Many different numbering systems
• Some systems use numbers, others letters, some a mixture of both
• Choose a numbering system that suits organization’s needs
• Mark the accession number on the containers In which the new accession is stored temporarily, then mark the number on all archival folders, boxes, or other containers once the material is arranged and processed
• The accession record documents the acquisition of each new group of records by the archives; it serves to prove possession and ownership of documents in the archives. Until new material is processed, arranged, and described, an accession number will be the primary source of information
• Sample accession records  https://web.archive.org/web/20070820073122/http://aabc.bc.ca/aabc/wraccessions.pdf http://aabc.ca/media/8356/wraccessions.pdf
Deaccessioning

• When deciding whether or not to keep certain items, ask these questions:
• Is it no longer relevant to your archives policy?
• Is it no longer useful to researchers?
• Is there a danger of not being able to care for it?
• Has it deteriorated physically beyond all usefulness?
• Is it better suited to another archives?
Additional resources

• Mennonite Historical Society of Alberta. Library & Archives. Policies & Procedures. https://web.archive.org/web/20110827122603/http://www.mennonitehistory.org/archives/policy_procedure_manual_23apr2003.pdf
• Accessioning: The Transfer of Archival Records. http://web.archive.org/web/20050309030537/http://www.anla.nf.ca/sample_chpt.htm
• Appraisal and Accessioning
  http://aabc.ca/resources/archivists-toolkit/acquisition/
• Association of Newfoundland and Labrador Archives http://web.archive.org/web/20070220102611/http://www.anla.nf.ca/sample.htm