Text guides

Family archives

Keep the stories that make old files and objects meaningful. Record what is known, what is uncertain and who has agreed to share it.

12 practical tasks. Each guide includes a sample request and a way to check the answer.

Prepare questions for a family oral-history conversationA photograph, an old work tool or a recipe written in the margin can give a conversation somewhere to begin. Choose a subject the person wants to discuss and prepare a few questions that invite a story in their own words.
Write story cards for family objectsA story card says what the object is, who held it, what is documented and what the family remembers. Give each kind of statement its own labeled place. A tale told at every holiday remains a recollection until a record supports it.
Caption an old photo when some details are uncertainName the people you can confirm and mark every other identification as possible, inside the caption itself. A note kept elsewhere gets lost when the image is copied. Add the evidence for each name and the question still open.
Index a collection of family lettersAn index records who wrote to whom, when, on what broad subject and where the paper is kept. It does not need to copy anything private. Keep topics general, note who may see each letter, and record how each date was found.
Build a family timeline from source recordsPut each event in order with its date, its source and your confidence in it. When two records disagree, keep both entries. A timeline that shows the conflict is more useful than a tidy sequence that hides it.
Make a scene log for old home videosNote the file name, a start timecode, who appears, what is happening and whether the scene may be shared. Watch once, log as you go and write only what is visible or audible. Leave out what you assume happened off camera.
Plan a small family digitization projectPick one collection that fits in a few sessions. Record its priority, any condition concern, a file naming rule and how you will check each scan. Finishing a small box teaches more than starting on every box at once.
Ask a digitization service the right questionsBefore you send anything to a digitization service, list what you have and ask how they handle each type of material, what files you will receive and how originals come back. Get each answer in writing from the provider, and mark anything you only assume.
Agree on how a family archive can be sharedAsk contributors about their wishes for sharing the family archive, and record the audience and item groups covered by each answer. Keep requests for family viewing separate from plans for public posting. List unanswered questions about private material or reuse before distributing copies more widely.
Prepare an oral-history transcript for the speaker to reviewPrepare the transcript with timestamps and a separate question list. Preserve unclear passages instead of guessing them, and ask the speaker to review names, meaning and privacy preferences. Keep later clarifications distinguishable from the words in the original conversation so readers can see what changed.
Add source notes to a family-history draftPair every claim in the draft with the source document it rests on, where that record is kept and who supplied it. Where only a memory supports a detail, say so in the note so readers can weigh it correctly.
Draft an inquiry about donating a small archiveWrite a short inquiry that says what the collection is, which dates and subjects it covers, how much there is, what condition it is in and whether you own all of it. Ask whether the institution is interested and what its process is.

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