Common Archival Elements

A resource title consists of:

• A name segment that identifies the person(s), family or families, or corporate body or bodies responsible for creation or collection of materials.

• A term indicating the nature of the materials, such as papers for mixed materials created by individuals or families; records for mixed business or organizational records created by corporate entities; and collection when the material has been assembled into an artificial collection by any kind of collector.

It is also important to note the following:

• If a collection consists of one type of content (e.g., posters, visual materials, sound recordings, etc.), that term should be used in the title.

• If multiple individuals, family members, or families have made significant contributions to the creation or accumulation of materials, indicate all in the name segment of the title. 

• If the records of more than one corporate body are included in the materials, record only one name in the title.  Names of other creators may be added as Agent records and included in exported MARC records and EAD files.

Title elements for archival objects can describe either intellectual entities (e.g., series or subseries) as well as the manifestations of the archival materials (e.g., material associated with instances or digital objects). As such, they should provide researchers and reference staff with a clear and unambiguous idea of the nature and scope of materials. 

It is also important to note the following:

• Subordinate objects inherit descriptive information from their parents. Therefore, information provided at a high level (e.g., a series title of "Correspondence") that also applies to their children does not need to be explicitly stated at lower levels (e.g., at the file level).

• Avoid jargon or idiosyncratic terms in title elements. If the actual name referenced in the title element must be included but is unclear (e.g., "Blue books"), provide a brief definition of that material in parentheses (e.g., "Blue books (annual reports)").

• Spell out abbreviations on the folder in the finding aid. 

• Try to avoid describing content as "miscellaneous." If the processor is unable to categorize material, it may not belong in the collection! If the processor does include miscellaneous material in the collection, try to use a more neutral name (e.g., "various"), and provide a brief description of the object's contents in relevant note.

• Use a relevant note field to record additional significant information about the intellectual entity or materials. See the "Notes" section on this page for more information.

• Be mindful of the length of an archival object's title. It is crucial to be concise: long folder titles will often take a lot of time to record in ArchivesSpace, while lengthy series, subseries, etc., titles in ArchivesSpace will require both time and space to replicate on a folder or other container.

• In cases where the Bentley lacks the appropriate equipment to transfer materials off of removable media, use the guidelines in the  "Archival objects (audiovisual material only)" section to devise a title for the object.

• In rare cases, the processor can use brackets to briefly provide context about a confusing original title. For an example, see the final entry of the "Research material" series of the Morton J. Netzorg papers.

When creating archival objects for analog audiovisual material, the processor:

• Can either use a formal title if one exists or devise a title from some combination of the creator name, subject, genre, location, or some other logical descriptor.

• Should avoid using ambiguous labels found on the media as a unit title or folder heading. Strive to convey what the recording is rather than what might be written on its case. Remember that if the processor doesn't understand what a label means, researchers won’t either!

• Can describe an unlabeled or ambiguously labeled recording as “untitled [format]” for media that we do not have the capacity to play in-house. See the Processing Spaces document (internal link) for a list of media that Bentley staff can play in-house.

The Level of Description field is determined by the type of entity primarily responsible for the creation or accumulation of the materials. It also has an impact on how the finding aid's Biographical/Historical Note is displayed in Arclight. 

Processors should select one of two options for this field:

• If the creator of the materials is a person or a family: Choose "Collection." This option will display a Biographical/Historical Note that is titled "Biography" in Arclight.

• If the creator is a corporate entity: Choose "Record Group." This option will display a Biographical/Historical Note that is titled "History" in Arclight.

Processors should select one of the following options when designating an archival object's level of description:

• Subgroup.

• Series.

• Subseries.

• File.

It is also important to note the following:

• All sibling archival objects in a finding aid must have the same value to display correctly in Arclight. For example, if one archival object is listed as a "Series" and its sibling archival object is listed as a "File," the latter will not display correctly in our Arclight instance.

• "File" may be used for purely intellectual components as well as the actual manifestations of content.  For example, a box's folders--each of which may be described as a "File" in ArchivesSpace--may themselves be children of a non-physical "File" in ArchivesSpace. Processors can do this both to describe Files created by themselves or the donor, as well as for situations in which intellectual units (e.g., Series) need to be re-designated as Files to ensure all components of a finding aid will display correctly in Arclight. 

• If a collection only has one series, that series may be named the same as the collection.

Date records help researchers determine the temporal scope of a particular kind of material. Processors will use the following to construct date records:

• Label. Select the "Creation" drop-down option (public link).

• Type. Select the "Inclusive Dates" drop-down option (public link), even if materials are only from a single year (see below for information about creating bulk dates).

• Expression. This field should contain a human readable expression of the date (or date range) for the content associated with a collection, such as when that content was created or used. It can contain qualifiers (e.g., "circa" (public link) when the date is estimated, or merely left as "undated" when the material is undated and it is not possible to estimate their dates.

• Begin/End Dates. These fields are used to record the "machine-readable" version of dates that are present in the Expression field (see this example (public link) and are typically created automatically via a plugin (see below for more information). There are several caveats when entering these dates:

  •  If a given date record only involves one year. Only fill in the Begin date field.

  • If the Expression is an approximation. Employ appropriate Begin/End dates (e.g. an Expression of "Circa  1960s" would have a Begin date of 1960 and an End date of 1969).

  • Dates must be entered in the YYYY-MM-DD format. For example, "1980-09-20" would be used to represent September 20, 1980.  

  • Generally only record years. Unless materials merit highly specific date information, the Bentley typically only records the years (YYYY).  

  • If the material's Expression field value is "undated", leave the Begin and End dates blank.

• (Optional) Certainty. This field will only be used in cases when the dates are uncertain and should be used in conjunction  with the Expression field. Its purpose is to indicate cases where the date(s) are approximate, inferred, or questionable. Consult with the Lead Archivist for Collections Management if unsure of the appropriate term to use from the drop-down menu.

It is also important to note the following:

• Create multiple date records when there is a large gap in the date of the materials. In cases where materials were created in separate periods of time with large gaps in between, it may be appropriate to record them separately (“1925-1930" and "1970-1975”) rather than suggest that these materials cover an entire date span (“1925-1975”).  In these cases, you will need to create multiple date records (by clicking the "Add Date" button (public link).

• If there is a concentration of materials for a particular span within the broader "Inclusive" date range, create a second date record and use the "Bulk Dates" type.  This is optional and should only be employed when there is a narrower date range that reflects when the majority of materials in the collection were created.

• For most material, do not end the dates element with a dash or terms such as “ongoing” when further accruals for a resource are expected. Instead, the "End" date should reflect the most recently received materials...

• However, the processor can use "ongoing" when describing archived websites. The Bentley archives hundreds of websites and regularly adds to its collection of archived websites.  This makes it challenging to update dates in finding aids and/or MARC records every time a new crawl is performed. We therefore make an exception for describing the end date of archived websites by indicating it as "ongoing." 

  • For example: If a collection has physical and/or born-digital records other than the website that end in a certain year, as well as an archived website, indicate the end date of the records in inclusive dates for the resource but use "-ongoing" for the website archival object's Expression field (and leave the End Date blank). In other words, a resource record's date may be expressed as "1978-2019" (with a Begin Date of 1978 and End Date of 2019), while its website archival object (which has been collected since, say, 2014) will be expressed as "2014-ongoing" (with a Begin Date of 2014 only). 

• The Bentley uses an ArchivesSpace plugin (public link) that automatically attempts to parse the date expression into machine-readable Begin/End dates. The plugin should work for most standard date forms entered in the Expression field. While the processor will not often need to enter Begin/End dates manually, it is important to verify that the plugin parsed the dates properly and to make any necessary corrections using the guidelines above. It should also be noted that the Era and Calendar fields will be automatically completed as "ce" and "Gregorian," respectively (and can be left as is).

• A "Calculate Date" feature (public link) can be used to calculate date values quickly. This option should only be used when the dates for associated children are not scattered or have gaps.

For audiovisual material, the processor should heavily use the above guidelines to create a date record. 

However, if the recording is a broadcast and has more than one date, the processor should change the Label to "Broadcast" and record the broadcast date. They can then create additional date records for the material if necessary.

It is also important to note the following:

• Processors should disregard the property of inheritance and create a date record for each audiovisual item. Although the property of inheritance dictates that lower level archival material inherits information from its higher level components, processing archivists will need to create this date information to facilitate digitizing audiovisual material. Consult with the Lead Archivist for Audiovisual Curation for more information.

• The Audiovisual Format Identification Guide (public link) may help in determining the approximate date of a piece of audiovisual material.

Extent records help researchers understand the overall amount of content in a collection and also yield information important for the Bentley's collection management practices.  

Processors will use the following to construct extent records for resource records:

• Portion. This element indicates if this particular extent record represents the entirety of the material in the collection or just part of the extent. If the former, select "Whole" from the drop-down menu; if the latter, select "Part" (public link). 

• Number. Use this field to enter a numeric value for the number of units (for both physical and digital items) in the extent statement.  Processors should use the following to determine the appropriate "Number":

  • Paige boxes and non-oversize Hollinger boxes: The number is based on linear feet, and is determined using this guide (public link).

  • Oversize containers (e.g., oversize boxes, folders, volumes, tubes, etc.): The number is based on the number of units (e.g., number of boxes, folders, etc.).

  • Mixed digital material: The number is based on the "size on disk" (i.e., the digital volume) in the most appropriate unit (e.g., KB, MB, GB, or TB), and not the number of files.

  • Digital audio and/or visual material: The number is based on the number of files (e.g., the number of digital audio files).

  • Websites: The number is based on the number of archived sites associated with the resource.

• Type. Select the appropriate type of unit being described from the drop-down menu. Consult with the Lead Archivist for Collections Management if you do not see an applicable "Type".

• Container summary (Optional). Only use when you must record additional information to clarify an extent statement, such as when the number of boxes does not match the numeric extent (e.g., when 2.5 linear feet of material is housed in 5 Hollinger boxes).

• Physical details (Optional). Only use to record information and special physical characteristics of content, including information necessary to access or use materials. For example, processors should add a value of "online" for digital material deposited in a DeepBlue collection or made available via Kaltura.

• Dimensions (Optional). Only use to document information about the size of the materials being described for a given extent.  The value for this field usually includes numerical data; measurements may be expressed in any convenient unit (e.g., "8 x 10 inches").

It is also important to note the following:

• If the top-level Resource Record includes extent information related to different carriers, the processor will need to create more than one extent record (using the "Add Extent" button). For example, if a collection is housed in Paige boxes (measured in linear feet) and oversize metal edge boxes (measured in the number of units), then two extent records will need to be created.

• When estimating the numeric portion of the extent record, consider how much material researchers have to “go through” physically.  For example, if a Paige box is ¾ full, the extent for that box is 0.75 linear feet. 

If an Archival Object will be associated with an Instance of the content that either: 

• Includes more than one folder, and/or;

• Consists of any kind of non-folder physical object (e.g., volume, audiovisual material, etc.);

Then the processor will need to add an Extent statement so that researchers and reference archivists understand that the description encompasses multiple items or different formats. See the audiovisual extent guidelines below for instructions on creating extent records for audiovisual material.

Processors will use the following to construct extent records for most archival objects:

• Portion. This will almost always be "Whole", with the following exceptions:

  • If multiple kinds of content are associated with the archival description (e.g., both volumes and folders), these should be represented in separate Archival Object records so that patrons may indicate which they wish to request. 

  • If the Archival Object is describing a folder that contains an audiovisual item (e.g., a folder with an audiocassette inside), add multiple Extents, selecting a Portion of "Part" for the Extent relating to the audiovisual item.

• Number. Use this field to enter a numeric value for the number of units (for both physical and digital items) in the extent statement.  

• Type. Select the appropriate type of unit being described from the drop-down menu (e.g., "folders"). The processor should consult with the Lead Archivist for Collections Management if they do not see an applicable "Type".

• Container summary (Optional). Only use when you must record additional information to clarify an extent statement, such as when four volumes are maintained in two folders.

• Physical details (Optional). Only use to record information and special physical characteristics of content. Whenever possible, use format names from the Getty Research Institute's Art and Architecture Thesaurus (public link). 

• Dimensions (Optional). Only use to document information about the size of the materials being described for a given extent.  The value for this field usually includes numerical data; measurements may be expressed in any convenient unit (e.g., "8 x 10 inches").

It is also important to note the following:

• If the Archival Object describes a single folder containing no audiovisual materials or digital materials that do not have established transfer procedures, no Extent record is necessary.

• For removable media without established transfer procedures, record item-level extent statements using the audiovisual extent guidelines noted below. Common examples include DATs (e.g., Type: audiocassettes; Physical Details: digital audio tape) and tape drives (e.g., Type: data tapes; Physical Details: 9-track tape).

Processors will use the following to construct extent records for audiovisual archival objects:

• Portion. Select "Whole" from the drop-down list.

• Number. This will typically be "1".

• Type. To identify the type of audiovisual material, use this site's format identification guide (public link). If the format is not easily identifiable, use a general designation (e.g., audiocassette, videocassette, open reel videotape, film reel, phonograph record, etc.).

• Physical Details (Optional). Use this field to add format specific information or speed. Consult the Audiovisual Extent List (internal link) for more information.

• Dimensions (Optional). Use this field to add reel size, tape width or film gauge information, if available. Consult the Audiovisual Extent List (internal link) for more information.

Resources

The "Conditions Governing Access" note indicates if there are any restrictions that impact access to the materials described in the Resource Record or if all the materials are freely available for research. As this statement applies to the resource in its entirety, it is not necessary to include restriction begin/end dates (these will be recorded in the container/item listing).

The Bentley uses the following set language:

• For resources without any restrictions: Use the default phrase: The collection is open without restriction.

• For resources that include restrictions: Use the default phrase: Restrictions apply; see item listing for details. Additionally, make sure to also provide high-level information about where that restricted information is located, which will help reference staff tasked with connecting researchers with that material (e.g. "Restrictions apply; see item listing for details. Select personnel material in the Audiovisual series is restricted for 35 years from their date of creation."). 

It is also important to note the following:

• The processor may not be able to complete this note until processing has been completed. 

• For audiovisual material that is restricted to the reading room of the Bentley Historical Library, the processor should use the statement of "The collection is open without restriction", but also note that access to this material is limited to the reading room (e.g. "The collection is open without restriction. The video in the Topical Files series is restricted to the reading room of the Bentley Historical Library."). 

Archival Objects

For Archival Objects, the "Conditions Governing Access" note is used to document restrictions to particular materials in a collection. For information about the kinds of restrictions that the Bentley uses, consult the Sensitive Materials section of this manual (public link). 

Once the processor has identified the restriction type for that object, they will click the "Add Note" button, select "Conditions Governing Access" from the drop-down menu, and complete the following fields:

• Under Local Access Restrictions Type, select the appropriate restriction type.

• For Restriction End, put day that the restriction expires in the YYYY-MM-DD format. Completing this field is not necessary for fragile material or material that is restricted to the reading room of the Bentley Historical Library.

Once these fields are completed, review the content field of the note to ensure it has been correctly populated.

It is also important to note the following:

• As a reminder, restricted university archives material include executive records (restricted 20 years), personnel records (restricted 30 years), student records (restricted 85 years), and patient/client and attorney/client records (restricted 100 years). These restrictions expire on July 1 of the appropriate year.

• For restricted material that has a date range, use the latest date to determine when that material will be open. For example, if an archival object has an "Executive Records" restriction--and has a creation date expression of "2010-2016"--that object will be restricted until July 1, 2036.

• Sensitive information (e.g., credit card numbers, account numbers, etc.) in non-university archives material that cannot be redacted or discarded will either be restricted in a manner similar to their University Archives counterparts or simply closed. 

• Material that is specifically restricted in a gift agreement will be closed until December 31st of the specified year.

For both Resources and Archival Objects, the same kind of language is used to record copyright information as well as any conditions governing the use of materials (such as reproduction or publication).

Typically, the Bentley will use the following statements for University Archives material:

• Copyright is held by the Regents of the University of Michigan but the collection may contain third-party materials for which copyright is not held. Patrons are responsible for determining the appropriate use or reuse of materials.

• Copyright is not held by the Regents of the University of Michigan. Patrons are responsible for determining the appropriate use or reuse of materials.

And the following language for non-University Archives material:

• Donor(s) have transferred any applicable copyright to the Regents of the University of Michigan but the collection may contain third-party materials for which copyright was not transferred. Patrons are responsible for determining the appropriate use or reuse of materials.

• Donor(s) have not transferred any applicable copyright to the Regents of the University of Michigan. Patrons are responsible for determining the appropriate use or reuse of materials.

If the copyright status of the material is unknown, use the following language:

• Copyright status is unknown. Patrons are responsible for determining the appropriate use or reuse of materials.

Resources

A collection-level scope and content note provides an overview of the record group or manuscript collection as a whole, noting general characteristics (such as major types of materials) and important research strengths or weaknesses. See the Scope and Contents note portion of DACS (public) for more information about what to include in a scope and contents note. 

Archival Objects

Below the resource record, scope and contents note are predominantly used at the series or subgroup level to provide more specific information about that grouping's contents than at the collection level. As such, a scope and contents note for a series or subgroup may not be necessary if that content is already adequately described in the collection-level note. 

If they are used, series- or subgroup scope and contents notes should begin with the name of the series and some basic extent information about the material in that series before describing the rest of the content in depth. For example:

• "The Personal series (1.5 linear feet) contains..."

As usual, see the Scope and Contents note portion of DACS (public) for more information about what to include in a scope and contents note. 

It is important for the processor to note the following when describing the extent of digital material at the series- or subgroup-level:

• If the digital extent for the series is equal to the collection-level series extent and is unrestricted: Calculate it and reference it in the scope and contents note. For example: "The Personal Series (1.5 linear feet and 20 GB (online))..."

• If digital records are spread out across the collection and unrestricted: Only indicate that the series contains digital files. For example: "The Personal Series (1.5 linear feet and digital files (online))..."

• If the series contains digital files that are restricted: Only indicate that the series contains digital files. For example: "The Personal Series (1.5 linear feet and digital files (online))..."