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Penn's Landing, Philadelphia PA
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Seamen's Church Institute
Archives Processing Project Blog
July 1, 2008 – Processing of Seamen's Church Institute Records is complete! Finally, at the end of June, this remarkable collection was ready for research. This milestone marked the completion of a 12-month-long processing project, generously funded by the Albert M. Greenfield Foundation.
The Archives and Library staff are delighted by the completion of the work, as the records of Seamen’s Church Institute (SCI) have enhanced the Seaport Museum’s archival collections considerably more than expected. The Museum's collections are noteworthy for highlighting the history of Delaware River Valley shipyards and maritime industries—SCI's records dovetail with these collections, offering another side to the story of the Delaware River. It is rich in historical documentation of twentieth-century seamen's social welfare and the Port of Philadelphia.
During the concluding months of the processing project, staff worked steadily to finalize archival housing, arrangement and description. Together, these three phases of archives management maximize historic documents' lifespan and research potential, thus enabling archivists to be both stewards and advocates for their collections. While housing and arrangement were on-going since the project's beginning in January, archival description occurred as a final phase.
Starting in May, the processing team set to work documenting the contents of the collection. Narrative descriptions were composed to place SCI in its historic context and to describe the nature of the records. To augment these descriptions, lists of every folder title in the collection were created. Together, these two descriptive elements create what archivists call a finding aid. A finding aid, which can take many forms, provides a means through which records can be uncovered more readily. Users are able to identify materials pertinent to their research, saving time and eliminating unnecessary handling of documents. The finding aid produced for Seamen's Church Institute Records can be viewed online at: www.phillyseaport.org/SCI-guide.
For information on Seamen's Church Institute history—as revealed through these records—visit our online mini-exhibit, Amenities Abound at Seamen's Church Institute »
March 15, 2008 – Processing of the Seamen's Church Institute Records continues, now with a different focus. Though providing archival quality storage for materials is still a concern, providing an appropriate arrangement scheme is now the focal point of the work. Imagine the difficulty of managing hundreds of thousands of historic records that document the important work of Seamen's Church Institute. Establishing a comprehensive arrangement scheme minimizes this difficulty.
Collection arrangement should reflect the workings of an organization and at the same time allow for ease of access. After all, if researchers are unable to navigate and use the records, why keep them in the first place? The first step in determining arrangement is to identify discrete groups of materials within the collection. In the Seamen's Church Institute Records at least five major file groups are apparent: meeting minutes, financial materials, records related to publications, records of predecessor organizations and, finally, a rather large subject and correspondence file.
Multiple Seamen's Church Institute staff members contributed to this subject and correspondence file for more than 30 years. As a result, this group of documents, though kept in alphabetical order, is not easy to navigate.
For example, materials created by the organization's many Women's Auxiliary groups were scattered throughout the files, making access cumbersome for anyone interested in women's contributions to the organization. In this instance, when the arrangement of this record group is complete, all files relating to the Women's Auxiliaries will be brought together under the umbrella of "Women's Auxiliaries." Then, within this, files will be arranged by the official name of each Auxiliary.
This process of archival arrangement reconciles Seamen's Church Institute's organically created filing system with the material's new status as a publicly accessible historic resource.
Record cartons brought up from storage
on the first day of the project »
Bundled documents, as found in
storage boxes »
Ledger book spine,
before and after mold treatment. »
Rust stain from metal paperclip »
Archival document containers
with rehoused 1920s meeting minutes »
February 1, 2008 – The Seamen's Church Institute collection of historic records spans roughly 100 linear feet, more than the length of two school buses! This substantial archive documents the organization's work, offering valuable insights into the life of sailors in the merchant marine as well as a vital aspect of Philadelphia's history—its seaport.
Thanks to a grant from the Albert M. Greenfield Foundation, processing of this important archive began in earnest in the middle of December 2007. Processing, generally speaking, is a term archivists use to describe the practice of making historically relevant documents fully accessible to the public, while at the same time creating the best environment possible for safeguarding the collection for posterity.
Typical of such collections, the state of the materials upon arrival at the Museum was not ideal. The papers were originally stored in file cabinets, acidic folders and envelopes, three-ring binders, and boxes of varying sizes. Although standard for maintaining records in active use, these practices can cause damage to the records over time.
Unfortunately, some of the materials were found to be in poor condition. Space constraints at the Seamen's Church Institute made it necessary to store older records in a basement room. Here, time and imperfect conditions caused some materials to bend, fold, crinkle and tear. Other records endured water damage, causing the paper to distort, inks to bleed, and metal fasteners such as staples and paper clips to rust and stain the documents. Water damage also caused mold growth on several binders and ledger books. Luckily, the mold was inactive, making treatment easier. A special vacuum was used to remove the mold residue.
Other steps will be taken to further stabilize the materials. For example, climate controlled storage goes a long way in preventing decay. Other measures, such as staple and paper clip removal, unfolding documents, and providing archival quality boxes and folders will help limit future staining and tearing, and slow down the overall aging process. Such uniform housing will also encourage better handling of the records, which minimizes the potential for damage during use by researchers.