bpw international archives chair: prof. dr. catherine bosshart, historian

Why Are Archives Crucial?

BPW International Archives

BPW International ArchivesChair: Prof. Dr. Catherine Bosshart, Historian

BPW International ArchivesChair: Prof. Dr. Catherine Bosshart, Historian

Why are archives important?

• Historians rely mostly on written sources

• History is only written about information we have stored somewhere = archives

• No archives, no traces ► nothing to tell about women’s initiatives

BPW International Archives in Amsterdamlocated in the Atria Institute for Emancipation and

Women’s History

BPW International ArchivesChair: Prof. Dr. Catherine Bosshart, Historian

As things of the archives are now

Draft inventory of 50% of the archives is done

Gramophone records (41) are being digitized and inventoried

BPW International ArchivesChair: Prof. Dr. Catherine Bosshart, Historian

Plans for 2015

Finishing the draft inventory of the archives

Selection of the photographs for digitizing

Decision what parts of the archives should be made accessible online

BPW International ArchivesChair: Prof. Dr. Catherine Bosshart, Historian

10 principles for storing archives of bpw federations or clubs

1. Where do you store the archival material?

Conditions: dry place, no danger of flooding, stable temperature in summer and winter, guard the sources from sunlight

BPW International ArchivesChair: Prof. Dr. Catherine Bosshart, historian

10 Principles to professional archives

2. What to do before storing the material? Take away all metallic and plastic devices, keep the bundles together with acid free paper strips

BPW International sources

BPW International ArchivesChair: Prof. Dr. Catherine Bosshart, historian

10 Rules to professional BPW archives

3. What to do with faxes? Make xerocopies of faxes, otherwise the content will totally fade away.

BPW International ArchivesChair: Prof. Dr. Catherine Bosshart, historian

10 Rules to professional BPW archives

4. How to keep sources? Put the sources in acid free boxes. folders that belong together go into an acid free folder.

BPW International ArchivesChair: Prof. Dr. Catherine Bosshart, historian

10 Rules to professional BPW archives

5.-7. What to do with pictures, oral sources, delicate paper?

• Scan pictures and store them in digitized form

• Complete the photos with names, the event and date

• Digitize tapes or gramophone records that are worth keeping

BPW International ArchivesChair: Prof. Dr. Catherine Bosshart, historian

10 Rules to professional BPW archives

8. Who takes care of proper treatment of archival sources?

Each Federation, each club should define an “Archives’ Chair” who takes the task of keeping the sources seriously and works, if necessary, with archivists.

BPW International ArchivesChair: Prof. Dr. Catherine Bosshart, historian

10 Rules to professional BPW archives

9. Who takes care of the proper treatment of archival sources?

Each Federation, each club should appoint an intern or a volunteer to write the inventory of the archives (introduction by a professional archivist might be necessary).

Annette Mevis, archivist at Atria Archives in Amsterdam, responsible for the BPW International fund

BPW International ArchivesChair: Prof. Dr. Catherine Bosshart, historian

10 Rules to professional BPW archives

10. How to use the archives?

Plan on the occasion of jubilees to write or have written a history of your club, your federation. Hand the history to new members – initiatives of the past help to empower new young members. Historians might use the material for research.