Process, Arrange, and Catalog Archives at the Western Archeological and Conservation Center

Project ID: P12AC15007

Federal Agency: National Park Service

Partner Institution: Western Washington University

Fiscal Year: 2012

Initial Funding: $169,869

Total Funding: $753,911

Project Type: Technical Assistance

Project Disciplines: Social

National Park: Intermountain Region

Principal Investigator: Jimerson, Randall

Agreement Technical Representative: Mitchell, Lynn

Abstract: This collaborative project between Western Washington University (WWU) and the National Park Service (NPS) will assist the Intermountain Region Museum Services Program with cataloging archives and preparing finding aids to facilitate their use. Processing, arrangement, and cataloging of an estimated 130 linear feet of archives from Glacier National Park, the Southwest Regional Office, and the Western Archeological and Conservation Center into the Interior Collections Management System (ICMS) will proceed in accordance with approved processing plans. An estimated 30 linear feet of Zion National Park natural resources archives will be processed and prepared for cataloging; these records will be cataloged as time permits. Arranged and described collections will be more available to the public, researchers, and park staff tasked with planning and management of park resources. Increased intellectual and physical control also will improve security and preservation of the materials. Students will be trained and, in collaboration with the Principal Investigator from WWU, guided in their work by Museum Services Program archivists. They will gain hands-on experience processing, cataloging, performing reference services related to the materials, and storing archival collections. NPS involvement is necessary to ensure that the collections are properly identified for cataloging and that work proceeds in accordance with the processing plans. These joint efforts in implementing the processing plans ensure that issues related to access are fully identified and addressed during cataloging. The public benefits from this project are many. Public interest in natural and cultural resources is growing, largely due to current issues like global warming, climate change, biodiversity, and endangered species protection. Access to the archival collections documenting the research and management activities is increasing apace, and much of that information is currently unknown and inaccessible. The finding aids resulting from this project made publicly available on the NPS Web Catalog are the first step to increasing public visibility of these archival collections.