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Archives are a collection of historical records that are preserved for their historical value. You may also hear archives called records, personal papers, manuscripts, or special collections. Archives can consist of letters and correspondence, speeches, photographs, maps, posters, and audiovisual media to name just a few.
Archives contain valuable primary source evidence of historical events, people, periods, and areas. For this reason, they can be used to help a scholar answer a specific research question or even help families trace their genealogy. Archives can also serve as an important way for preserving memories of specific events.
When people most often think of archives, museums and historical societies may readily come to mind, but archives can be held in a wide variety of places. Colleges and universities, businesses, government institutions, and indigenous communities are just a few of the many places where you can find archival collections. Archives can be held digitally as well. Organizations will digitize a portion of their physical collection to make certain records available online. See the section on finding archival material for links.
