Archive Trails
Maker, Donor and Owner Are Different Parts of an Object’s Story
Read the roles attached to names in an object record before building a biography, keeping manufacture, ownership and donation on separate lines.
A closer look at material history
Archive Trails
Follow documents and catalogue references into the wider story of an object.
Archive Trails
A Patent Drawing Is Not a Photograph of a Finished Product
Read a historical patent illustration as part of a document, then look for separate evidence before claiming that an identical product was manufactured.
Archive Trails
A Catalogue Illustration May Show a Product Family
Read a historical sales illustration alongside its captions and model references before assuming it depicts the exact version named in nearby text.
Archive Trails
The Background in an Object Photograph Is Part of the Record
Read labels, supports and surrounding objects in a collection photograph as contextual clues while avoiding unsupported conclusions about their date or association.
Archive Trails
The Newspaper Search Missed It: What OCR Can Leave Out
Historical newspaper searches depend partly on machine-readable text. Check the scanned page before treating a missing keyword as a missing story.
Archive Trails
Two Catalogue Pictures, One Product Name: Check the Variant
Compare historical product listings by their stated model, date and features, rather than assuming similar pictures describe exactly the same version.
Archive Trails
Ask About an Object Without Planting the Answer
Prepare open questions about a family object, record whose memory you are hearing, and separate recollection from information confirmed by documents.
Archive Trails
A Finding Aid Is a Map of an Archive, Not a Folder You Have Read
Use a finding aid to plan archival research, distinguish collection descriptions from inspected documents, and record the references needed for a focused enquiry.