{"id":118,"date":"2016-12-10T15:53:36","date_gmt":"2016-12-10T15:53:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.dorsetforyou.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/?p=118"},"modified":"2018-05-01T14:45:56","modified_gmt":"2018-05-01T14:45:56","slug":"twelve-days-of-archive-christmas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/2016\/12\/10\/twelve-days-of-archive-christmas\/","title":{"rendered":"Twelve days of archive Christmas"},"content":{"rendered":"

Inspired by the popular festive song, staff at Dorset History Centre bring you our own version of the Twelve Days of Christmas!<\/p>\n

\n

On the twelve\u00a0days of Christmas, my archives gave to me…<\/p>\n

A parchment in a brown box<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Dorset History Centre holds over 50,000 acid free boxes in environmentally controlled repositories – each one containing a piece of Dorset’s history.<\/p>\n

\"Photograph
Parchment in an archival box<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Two nitrile gloves<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Despite popular belief, handling archives does not always require wearing gloves.\u00a0Wearing gloves makes it difficult to handle paper due to reducing your\u00a0sense of touch in your finger tips. This may mean it is harder to turn the pages of a fragile document without causing damage. For most documents just a pair of clean, dry and careful hands is all you need!<\/p>\n

However, gloves must be worn when handling\u00a0photographic\u00a0<\/strong>material, including negatives and film. The surface of these sorts of media are\u00a0easily damaged by sweat and oils in the skin.<\/p>\n

\"Nitrile
Nitrile gloves for handling photographic material<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Three banned pens<\/strong><\/h2>\n

If you have visited an archive before you will no doubt be familiar with the ‘pencils only’ signs. The archives in our care are unique – often the only copy in existence in the world. We therefore take our responsibility for protecting and preserving the archives very seriously. We ask you to leave your pens, food and drink behind when looking at original archives to avoid any nasty accidents. Laptops and other electronic devices are welcome, and we have plenty of pencils!<\/p>\n

\"Photograph
Pencils only sign<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Four volunteers<\/strong><\/h2>\n

We are fortunate to have an enthusiastic and dedicated team of\u00a0volunteers<\/a>\u00a0to support the work of Dorset History Centre. Volunteers are involved in all sorts of activities, from\u00a0repackaging collections to conducting oral history interviews and organising fundraising events. In 2016 volunteers contributed over 2000 hours!<\/p>\n

\"Photograph
Volunteers working on the collections<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Five\u00a0old things<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Being an archive we have plenty of ‘old things’ in the collections. But what counts as old? Our oldest document is from the year 965AD but we collect records relating to the people and places of Dorset right up until today. This means that we care for a whole variety of media:\u00a0including film, video, audio cassette and digital\u00a0files as well as paper and parchment.<\/p>\n

\"Compilation
Parchment from 965AD; travel journal from nineteenth century; photograph from 1960s; VHS and CDs<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Six seals a-socking<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Re-packaging documents\u00a0into archive-friendly folders and boxes is one of the tasks involved in caring for our collections. Delicate seals are encased in specially made ‘socks’ (small pouches)\u00a0to help protect them from damage.<\/p>\n

\"Photograph
Volunteer repackaging documents<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Seven maps conserving<\/strong><\/h2>\n

In 2016 our\u00a0Archive Conservator\u00a0has been tasked with repairing some fairly large maps, both for private clients and internal projects. Depending on the condition of the map this may involve cleaning, repairing, humidifying and re-adhering bits of parchment or paper.<\/p>\n

\"Photograph
Conservator re-adhering skins<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Eight miles o’ shelving<\/strong><\/h2>\n

There are eight miles of shelving in the temperature and humidity controlled repositories at Dorset History Centre. If laid end to end, these shelves would stretch from Dorchester to Weymouth Pavilion!<\/p>\n

\"Photograph
Photograph of archive repository<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Nine trolleys whizzing<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Viewing archive documents is a bit like Argos –\u00a0hand us a slip with the number of the document you’d like to see and we will go and fetch it.\u00a0We use trolleys to transport documents from the repositories to the searchrooms for you to look at – listen out for the gentle rumbling of the wheels!<\/p>\n

\"Photograph
Document production in the repository<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Ten searchers searching<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Our researchers are exploring all sorts of topics – from family history to the story of a place or event. There is no need to make an appointment and viewing documents in our searchroom is free.\u00a0It is easy to get hooked – some of our regulars have been coming to the archives for many years as they find new stories to discover!<\/p>\n

\"Photograph
The Searchroom at Dorset History Centre<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Eleven staff a-helping<\/strong><\/h2>\n

We understand that sometimes archives can be confusing. We can help you start your research and make the best use of our resources.\u00a0Contact us<\/a>\u00a0us for advice or check out our upcoming series of\u00a0family history workshops<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Photograph
Staff assisting in the searchroom<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Twelve archives listing<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\"Photograph
Archivist processing new accessions<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Staff and volunteers are busy behind-the-scenes creating descriptions of our documents for you to search. Around 28,000 new entries have been added to the catalogue in 2016. This includes the work to catalogue the\u00a0Bankes family<\/a>\u00a0of Kingston Lacy and Corfe Castle collection, and the\u00a0Poole Borough<\/a>\u00a0collection. The catalogue is available to\u00a0search online<\/a>.<\/p>\n

We look forward to sharing more of Dorset’s history with you in 2017. Merry Christmas!<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Inspired by the popular festive song, staff at Dorset History Centre bring you our own version of the Twelve Days of Christmas! On the twelve\u00a0days of Christmas, my archives gave to me… A parchment in a brown box Dorset History Centre holds over 50,000 acid free boxes in environmentally controlled repositories – each one containing… Read more Twelve days of archive Christmas<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[7],"tags":[28],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/118"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=118"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/118\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":204,"href":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/118\/revisions\/204"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=118"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=118"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=118"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}