Wisconsin Historical Records
Advisory Board News
STATE BOARD SURVEYS CONDITION OF WISCONSIN'S HISTORICAL RECORDS
August 7, 1995
For the first time in twelve years, a comprehensive assessment of the condition of historical records in Wisconsin is being made. The Wisconsin State Historical Records Advisory Board (WHRAB) is currently in the middle of an eighteen-month long planning project that is looking at the needs of organizations who create, store and use historical records. This project is targeting archives, libraries, historical societies, museums, and other institutions. It will also examine the future of statewide historical records programs. Major changes in programs, collections, records access technology, and conservation/preservation needs over the past decade have made this reassessment a necessity.
As a first step, the Board surveyed historical records repositories throughout the state, including archives, museums, historical societies, and libraries. It received and tabulated more than 230 completed surveys. These provided an overall glimpse at the status of historical records holdings in Wisconsin. The survey asked respondents about staffing, budgets, collection development and management issues, information technology, and user services.
The areas where institutions expressed the greatest interest for improvement of their historical records programs are:
- preservation
- processing collections
- storage space needs
- staff size/training
- computerization.
Among the specific findings were the following:
- There has been a steady and significant growth in the size of collections held by various institution. On a statewide basis, the 230 surveyed institutions hold over 95,000 cubic feet of historical records. This does not include the State Historical Society which holds an additional 96,000 cubic feet.
- Much of the work at historical records repositories is either done by volunteers or by small staffs of one or two. The level of volunteerism is high with over 600 individuals regularly donating time and effort at various institutions.
- There is a clear need for more professional training in certain areas. For example, only 38% of all responding institutions have staff members with any training in preservation/conservation.
- Most institutions do not fully realize the problems associated with technical change, technical obsolescence, and physical deterioration as it affects their collections and their ability to access those collections. This is true for a variety of media, and it includes such problems as deterioration in microfilm, magnetic tape, and electronic records.
- Only 14% of all respondents have an institutional disaster plan.
In addition to the institutional surveys, the Board will also be gaining information about historical records needs in other ways. A survey of the users of historical records collections is being planned. Many statewide organizations have been personally contacted in order to learn more about their interests and concerns. This data will be used by the members of four task forces that will meet this Fall. These task forces will be composed of archivists, librarians, records managers, genealogists, and others interested in the future of historical records. Their deliberations will form the basis for Board' s long-range planning goals which will be published next year in the form of a final report. This planning project has been made possible through a grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC).
Anyone interested in knowing more about the WHRAB Planning Project or receiving copies of the survey results should contact the Wisconsin Historical Society. Please contact State Archivist Peter Gottlieb at the SHSW Archives Division, 816 State Street, Madison, WI 53706.
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