I am a huge film fan. When I was growing up I saved the ticket from every movie I saw. Ever the archivist, I had a special little tin where I kept them. Years later,[…]
Making Connections: The History Begins at Home Initiative
I think it’s safe to say that we are all longing for meaningful connections these days. Connecting is one of the joys of being human. Ironically, today we have more technology available to help us[…]
20/20 Vision: Seeing a Conference Differently
The last two months of my life have been consumed not by COVID-19, but by my role as Chair of the Program Team for the Association of Canadian Archivists’ 45th annual conference. This journey began[…]
COVID-19: An Archivist at Home (Part 3)
It’s hard to believe that it has been 55 days since the global pandemic was declared. A part of me hoped that there would be no Part 3 to this COVID-19 blog series, but alas,[…]
Add Some Zest to your Zoom: Using Archival Photos as Backgrounds
This week I am happy to welcome Andréa Tarnawsky to the blog. She has been working on adding some spice to our staff Zoom calls and I thought it would be great to share what[…]
COVID-19: An Archivist at Home (Part Two)
So, it’s been two weeks since I posted my first COVID-19 blog post. I am hoping to post every two weeks or so as I think this will be an interesting chronicle of how things[…]
The Personal is the Professional: An Archivist Attempts to Process her Childhood Archives
I am so pleased to be able to feature another guest post from Kathryn Louro. Many thanks to Kat for suggesting this great topic for these bizarre COVID-19 times. In this post, she brings her[…]
COVID-19: An Archivist at Home
I have been struggling with whether or not to write a blog post in these strange times. Like everyone else, I have been adjusting to the new reality of social distancing, self-isolation, and remote work. But part[…]
ACA@UBC 2020 – From Accountability to Memory
Another year older and another ACA@UBC in the books. Congratulations to the students at the UBC iSchool for another great day out of the office, chit-chatting with other archivists, and learning about archival practice around[…]
Accio Archives: Unleashing BitCurator
I am stepping aside for this one and giving the Things I’m Fonds Of floor over to a guest today. This post has been provided by John Moran. Originally from Ireland, John now lives on the unceded[…]
#AskAnArchivist Day 2019
I crunched the old numbers and it seems that this is my 50th Things I’m Fonds Of post! I can’t quite believe it! It blew me away so I didn’t want this milestone to go[…]
Accession, Arrange, Take Action! Archivists and Climate Change
Across the world, on September 20th, 2019, people demanded action on climate change. Students abandoned their classrooms for the climate change cause—possibly the most human of all issues. We created the problem, we made it[…]
20/20 Vision: Seeing Archives Differently (ACA Conference Call for Submissions)
I have the privilege of chairing the Program Committee for the annual conference of the Association of Canadian Archivists in 2020. The theme is 20/20 Vision: Seeing Archives Differently and the conference will be held[…]
Cooperation Makes it Happen
At this year’s Association of Canadian Archivists conference in Toronto, Ontario, I presented in a lightning round session about the Lower Mainland Municipal Archivists Forum (LMMAF)—a group I formed in 2016. My presentation explored some[…]
City of Coquitlam Archives is Hiring!
The City of Coquitlam Archives is hiring a full time Archives and Records Officer. Come work with me! Archives and Records Officer Regular Full Time The City of Coquitlam is the sixth largest city in[…]
I SIP, you ZIP, we DIP: Archivematica Camp Vancouver, 2019
Last week I had the pleasure of attending Artefactual’s Archivematica Camp held at the University of British Columbia. It was a three day intensive introduction to the Archivematica software and I was really impressed by[…]
Archival Origins: ACA 2019 Toronto
Another year has passed and so another Association of Canadian Archivists (ACA) Conference is in the books. ACA 2019 in Toronto explored our “Archival Origins” and encouraged us to think about the roots of the[…]
BC GLAM Symposium 2019
Another year, another opportunity for GLAM puns! While only one presenter at this year’s BC GLAM Symposium used an image of a GLAM rocker, we were all feeling GLAM-orous as members of the British Columbia[…]
To Charge or Not to Charge: Use Fees in Archives
A recent CBC broadcast from the show “On the Island” and an accompanying article highlighted something that has been on my mind for years and is an issue that is up for regular debate among my[…]
ACA@UBC 2019: Policy Matters
Writing this blog has been such an enriching experience, but man does it ever make time fly! Another year has passed and been marked by the always engaging ACA@UBC Student Conference, held on February 15th, 2019. The[…]
Movin’ on up!
It’s been radio silence from me on the blog of late as I have been crazy busy moving the City of Coquitlam Archives to its new home. It has been exhausting and thrilling (and painful at[…]
Fighting Archival Stereotypes – Ditching “Dusty”
Let me tell you about something I am not ‘fonds’ of – the word dusty. It makes me irrationally (or perhaps perfectly rationally) angry when I hear it in reference to archives. It makes me[…]
Hope Beyond Hope: Archival Professionals in Rural and Northern BC
This month, I am so pleased to feature a guest post from Kathryn Louro. In this post, she provides some much-needed insight into archival life outside of urban centers. Enjoy! Brief Bio: Kathryn Louro is an[…]
A Beginner’s Guide to Eliminating Plastic at Home
I’m not going to lie, this post is going to be a pretty big stretch in terms of an archival link. BUT – I think this is important and is in keeping with the overall theme[…]
#AskAnArchivist Day 2018
How has it been a year already? I admit that #AskAnArchivist Day jumped up on me this year. We had a major event going on here at the City of Coquitlam, so I wasn’t able[…]
Archivists as Curators
I have been thinking a lot about archivists as curators lately. People might not immediately associate archivists with curators (ok let’s be honest, people don’t associate archivists with much of anything except dust…mini rant over…)[…]
ACA 2018 – Truths, Trust, and Technology
I have been lucky enough to attend five of the past six Association of Canadian Archivists Conferences. Unfortunately, this year that luck ran out and I had to experience the conference vicariously through the entertaining (albeit often[…]
Searching for Answers in Archival Records (You can’t just Google them)
Anyone else out there addicted to Google Analytics? I regularly get lost down the rabbit hole of search queries that are being made on my archives’ online search portal. I want to know what researchers are[…]
A GLAMorous Day: BC’s First GLAM Symposium
In 2017, an MOU was signed between the BC Museums Association (BCMA), the Archives Association of BC (AABC), and the BC Library Association (BCLA). The historic agreement, the first-of-its-kind in Canada, formalized cooperation between the[…]
Ready Archives Patron One: Virtual Reality and Archives
Imagine being able to visit your local archives from your couch. Or have unmediated access to 18th century manuscripts half the world away. Virtual reality (VR) technology has incredibly exciting possibilities for archives. The technology allows humans[…]
ACA@UBC International Symposium: 10 Years Young
It started in the minds of students at UBC’s School of Library and Archival Studies as a modest student symposium. In the ten years since the inaugural ACA@UBC, it has blossomed into the thought-provoking two-day international[…]
Enhancing Digital Access through IIIF
Archivists are always searching for new and exciting ways to make their content accessible and relevant. Gone are the days when a researcher would expect to go to a reading room, search through a card catalogue,[…]
Archival Photographs: To Colour or Not to Colour?
“This will change how you feel about the past.” This headline from Pulptastic.com signals a trend that may not be entirely new but has recently exploded in popularity – the colourization of historical photographs. Pulptastic[…]
Passionate People: Lives Dedicated to Archives
Archivists are a wonderfully peculiar, yet intensely passionate little bunch of professionals. I have never met an archivist who turns the lights off in the office and completely leaves work inside those walls. There is[…]
#AskAnArchivist Day – The Sequel
It’s that time of year again – seriously, how has it been a year? Yesterday was #AskAnArchivist Day and although I kind of agree with @EiraTansey that the participants are likely made up mostly of[…]
Teaching with Documents: Using Archives to Educate
Exciting archival publishing news! The Archives Society of Alberta has just released its inaugural issue of Fonds d’Archives. This new online, open access, scholarly journal is an exciting departure from other archival publications in Canada and the[…]
Fonds or Fiction? Archives as Inspiration for Creative Writing
“There is no doubt fiction makes a better job of the truth.” – Doris Lessing We are all well aware that academic researchers and non-fiction writers pour over archival records in the search for the truth[…]
Conference Disrupted – ACA 2017 in Ottawa
A year ago, I wrote about how excited I was about the incredible work being done by archivists in Canada and abroad and how the ACA 2016 Conference in Montreal had inspired me to start[…]
My genealogical journey
In days gone by, if you wanted to research your family tree, it meant traipsing around to churches and archives in far off lands. It meant hours upon hours of scanning birth and marriage registers,[…]
How to save money by making your own archival boxes
So I know what you’re thinking. Why would you need to save money by building custom archival phase boxes? Archives are just rolling in cash, right? Of course they are, but just to be on[…]
So this one time, at AtoM Camp…
Nothing like a 90’s catch phrase you never wanted to hear again to get things started! Last week, I had the privilege of attending the first ever AtoM Camp, hosted by Artefactual Systems, the lead developers of[…]
Incredible Archives – the fascinating and the fun
My Archives is about as traditional as it gets. We preserve the historical memory of a city government as well as the community records that document the economic, political, and social history of the city.[…]
Reflections on the ACA@UBC Symposium
During my master’s years, I had the privilege of co-organizing the Carleton University Underhill Graduate Student Colloquium with Jenna Murdock Smith, friend and fellow archivist. Established more than 20 years ago, the Underhill Colloquium provides[…]
Artists and the Archives
Archivists often complain about a lack of everyday awareness of our profession and the societal importance of preservation and access to recorded memory. I am the first to lament the blank stares I get when[…]
Archives and Fashion: Manila is the New Black
Imagine if all collections were valued the way Condé Nast values its archives? An archival collection occupying real estate on the 15th floor of One World Trade Centre in Manhattan? Take that, dusty basement stereotypes! Of[…]
Inventive Ways of Using Archives to Engage with the Past
Before I dive into this post, I want to mention that the City of Coquitlam Archives is hiring! We are looking to recruit a permanent, full-time, Archives & Records Officer. The successful applicant will split[…]
Interview with an Archivist
Recently, I was approached by an archival masters student from the University of Texas at Austin, Chido Muchemwa. Her assignment was to talk to an archivist to gain insight into his or her daily work and the general[…]
Lest We Forget: Archives in the Classroom
When I worked at Library and Archives Canada (LAC), I was aware of the Lest We Forget Program and the work being done to introduce students to working with archival records, but it wasn’t until[…]
Digital Preservation: Choose Your Own Adventure
Cast your mind back to your childhood. You’re the protagonist and your choices determine the outcome of the story. Remember when you got to choose your own adventure? The outcome was not a fixed point and[…]
An Archival Girl in an Artifact World
Last week, I had the distinct pleasure of participating in the “Ask the Expert” session at this year’s BC Museums Association Conference in beautiful Whistler, BC. Having never attended a non-archival conference, I was excited to hear about[…]
Ask An Archivist Day
Yesterday was officially the longest time I have ever spent on Twitter. What a great day! #AskAnArchivist Day is an initiative by the Society of American Archivists (SAA) that is based on the popular #AskACurator Day.[…]
Captcha: The Link Between Robots and Archives
This summer I had the pleasure of spending a weekend on a houseboat. The “RV of the Sea,” my friends lovingly called it. My fellow shipmates included several friends of friends who were new to[…]
Disaster! How Archives Face the Unthinkable
Inspired by the work that has been done by the Archives Society of Alberta’s Flood Advisory Programme, I wanted to write about how archives prepare for and handle disasters. So I started by googling “flooded[…]
Then and Now: Archival Mashups
Everyone loves a good “Then and Now” comparison. We marvel at or lament the changes to a place. These comparisons help us to imagine what came before and help us to understand what exists in our[…]
Archivist: The Many-Faced Professional
Like so many others, I have been binge watching Game of Thrones recently, so I acknowledge that part of the inspiration for this post came from the concept of the Many-Faced God. I don’t presume to understand[…]
Wikipedia and Archives – Accessibility and the Greater Good
As a university Teaching Assistant, I learned to scan a student’s work for the telltale signs of academic laziness. At the top of my target list was any reference to Wikipedia as a scholarly source. I[…]
Catch ’em all! Pokémon in the Archives
A worldwide phenomenon like Pokémon Go is fascinating to me. Two weeks ago, we were all quietly going about our business, blissfully unaware that our lives were about to change. OK- perhaps a tad dramatic, but[…]
Archival Backlogs: Tackling the Mountain
I have had the great privilege of starting a municipal archives. With grand intentions and a touch of naiveté, I set out to process everything that came in before acquiring the next fonds or collection. One[…]
Raising Awareness of Archives in Canada
I think it’s safe to say that the archives profession has a branding problem. It is a rare occasion when my answer to the question, “What do you do for a living?” doesn’t elicit blank stares[…]
Many hands make light work? Crowdsourcing archival description and transcription
I get asked regularly whether I am digitizing everything in my archives’ holdings. There is an expectation that everything is digitized and accessible without having to physically enter an archives. But digitization is just the beginning.[…]
Starting an Archives Blog – Diving in!
I recently attended the annual conference of the Association of Canadian Archivists in Montreal, Quebec. The same thing happens to me every year after attending this conference. I am inspired and I get excited. When I get[…]