Enrollment options
Optional Print Course Material: Preserve Your Family
History Documents and Heirlooms
*Course material will only be sent to students who are registered in the course.
[Formerly titled: Protect Your Precious Documents]
You have taken the time to locate and acquire your family’s
precious documents, photos, and heirlooms. Now take the time to
protect, curate, and share them for future generations to
enjoy.
This course discusses how to preserve your family history items to minimize damage. The procedures for encapsulating documents and photographs will be explored, as well as other methods to protect your family heirlooms. You are your family’s archivist, and family history requires you to do more than research, you must also preserve material items of the past. This course will demonstrate the techniques and tools you need to do just that.
Course Length: 7 weeks
MODULE 1
PRESERVING YOUR FAMILY HISTORY
Introduction
What Should We Preserve?
Cleaning Procedures
Preservation
What You Will Want to Preserve
Worst Enemies of Preservation
MODULE 2
HANDLING AND STORING PAPER ITEMS
Paper Documents
Newsprint
What to keep & what to discard?
How are your documents held together?
Do your documents require cleaning?
Does your document have tears or rips in it?
How to Store Your Documents
Archival Products
MODULE 3
PHOTOGRAPHS & FAMILY BOOKS
Photographs & Negatives
Family Books
Archival Products
MODULE 4
AUDIO & VIDEO RECORDINGS, AND HEIRLOOMS
Audio Recordings
Live Action Video Recordings
Compact Disks
Special Heirlooms on Fabric, Wood, or Metal
Archival Products
MODULE 5
DIGITIZING FOR PRESERVATION
Introduction
Why Digitize?
Digitization Equipment
Digitization Guidelines
MODULE 6
RESOURCES & TOOLS
Records Preservation Tool Kit
In the End
Other Ways to Preserve Items for the Long Term
Suggested Reading & Resources