Notes allow for free-text descriptions of attributes of the collection or object being described that do not fall into any of the other modules in the record. At minimum, each collection record should have an Abstract note added; this provides a description of the collection, its creator, and its contents, and will appear in its MARC record in Sierra. Additional notes at any level may include a biographical/historical note, an arrangement note detailing how the collection is organized, and so on.
There are several types of note in ArchivesSpace; we do not apply all note types to every record. More information about each of the notes we use in ArchivesSpace at the collection level may be found below.
Required fields will appear in bold.
| Abstract | |
| Description | A concise summary of the key points of a larger work, often used to assist the reader in determining if that work is likely to be of use. This field is required at the resource/collection level, and optional at all other levels, though we do recommend that it be populated at the item level. |
| Local Rules | Create a brief summary of the materials being described, including bits of biographical or historical information about the creator and abridged statements about the scope, content, or other descriptive details about the arrangement, archival unit or one of its components, when appropriate. |
| Examples |
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| ArchivesSpace Key | abstract |
| Accruals | |
| Description | Indicates whether any additional materials are expected to be added to an existing collection. |
| Local Rules | Take information from donor agreements, records, and records schedules. Indicate whether or not future accruals are expected. Use DACS 5.4 as content guidelines. |
| Examples |
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| ArchivesSpace Key | accruals |
| Arrangement | |
| Description | Notes on the physical or intellectual arrangement of a collection, series, or container. |
| Local Rules | Arrangement is influenced by original order, chronology, topic, format, and other factors. Derive the information from the materials themselves. In general, collections are arranged by series, then by storage containers, folders, and/or items. All collections should have at least one series, one container, and one item in theory – even if the series and container information are de facto in nature. List the series number, series title and date range in documenting the arrangement and organization of the collection. Reserve more detailed explanations of arrangement for series-level description. If the collection has not been arranged, the note should read "The collection is unarranged." If the collection is partially arranged, the note should read "The collection is partially arranged." |
| Examples | The records are arranged in four series: 1. Iota Chapter Officers' Files,1987-1993. 2. Iota Chapter Files, 1965-1993. 3. Rush Papers,1940s-1992. 4. Memorabilia, 1930-1997. |
| ArchivesSpace Key | arrangement |
| Biographical/Historical | |
| Description | The biography of a person or family, or the organizational history of a corporate body. |
| Local Rules | Follow the guidelines below for writing biographical and historical notes. |
| Examples | |
| ArchivesSpace Key | bioghist |
| Custodial History | |
| Description | Information regarding the origins, custody, and ownership of an item or collection. |
| Local Rules | Here you would include information about the chain of ownership of the material being described, before they reached the immediate source of acquisition. Both physical possession and intellectual ownership can be described, providing details of changes of ownership and/or custody that are significant for its authenticity, integrity, and interpretation. Some of this information may be found in and copied from the Accession record for the materials. To record information about the immediate source of the described materials and the circumstances under with they were received by the repository, use the Immediate Source of Acquisition note. |
| Examples | |
| ArchivesSpace Key | custodhist |
| General | |
| Description | Any notes not covered by the types described here. |
| Local Rules | |
| Examples | |
| ArchivesSpace Key | odd |
| Immediate Source of Acquisition | |
| Description | The means by which Special Collections and Archives directly acquired the materials being described. |
| Local Rules | Document the name of the person(s), organization, or department that created the materials and the circumstances under which they were received, if known. Include donations, gifts, transfers, etc., and the month and date the materials were received. Information about the provenance or chain of custody beyond the immediate source of acquisition should be recorded in a Custodial History note. If you do not know the immediate source of acquisition, the note should read "Source unknown," or be omitted from the record. |
| Examples |
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| ArchivesSpace Key | acqinfo |
| Language of Materials | |
| Description | A prose statement enumerating the language(s), scripts, and symbol systems employed in the materials being described. |
| Local Rules | This information is required in the Basic Information section of the Resource record. If the language provided is "Multiple languages," a Language of Materials note is required. Use DACS 4.5 as content guidelines. |
| Examples |
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| ArchivesSpace Key | langmaterial |
| Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements | |
| Description | Information about attributes or defects relating to physical materials in a collection that would affect how it may be used, or hardware requirements needed to access the materials (such as a cassette player if oral histories are recorded on cassette tape). |
| Local Rules | |
| Examples | |
| ArchivesSpace Key | phystech |
| Preferred Citation | |
| Description | Information about how users should identify the described materials when referring to them in published credits. |
| Local Rules | Use DACS 7.1.5 and the citation format provided in the example below as content guidelines. |
| Examples |
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| ArchivesSpace Key | prefercite |
| Processing Information | |
| Description | Information about the creation and revision of archival descriptive records. Record the name(s) of the person(s) who created or revised the description, as well as the creation or revision date (the month and year). |
| Local Rules | Use DACS 8.1 for content guidelines. |
| Examples |
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| ArchivesSpace Key | processinfo |
| Related Materials | |
| Description | Information about materials that are not physically or logically included in the material described in the finding aid but that may be of use to a reader because of an association to the described materials. |
| Local Rules | Materials designated by this element are not related to the described material by provenance, accumulation, or use. Use DACS 6.3 for content guidelines. |
| Examples |
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| ArchivesSpace Key | relatedmaterial |
| Scope and Contents | |
| Description | A prose statement summarizing the range and topical coverage of the described materials, often mentioning the form of the materials and naming significant organizations, individuals, events, places, and subjects represented. |
| Local Rules | The purpose of the scope and content element is to assist readers in evaluating the potential relevance of the materials to their research. It may highlight particular strengths of, or gaps in, the described materials. The scope and content note should indicate the types of materials found in the collection, relevant dates, and note significant topics, themes, or formats. Use DACS 3.1 as content guidelines. |
| Examples | The collection contains household and personal items, early to mid-20th century, that belonged to Anna Ginsberg Hayutin. Most of the textiles in the collection were created by Anna herself and include a large number of table linens, bed linens, and doilies. Women's hats also feature prominently in the collection, and other items include collars, an ivory woman's toiletry set, women's jewelry, a jewelry box, three photo lapel pins, Anna's high school graduation autograph album, and a dictionary. (cite) |
| ArchivesSpace Key | scopecontent |
| Separated Materials | |
| Description | Information about materials that are associated by provenance to the described materials but that have been physically separated or removed. Items may be separated for various reasons, including the dispersal of special formats to more appropriate custodial units; the outright destruction of duplicate or nonessential material; and the deliberate or unintentional scattering of fonds among different repositories. |
| Local Rules | This field is intended to indicate the removal of archival materials from the collection being described, for the purposes of housing in another collection in Special Collections and Archives or preservation at another repository. Do not confuse with the Related Materials note, which refers to materials that are not physically or logically included in the material described in the finding aid but that may be of use to a reader because of an association to the described materials. Related materials are not related to the described material by provenance, accumulation, or use. Materials deemed non-archival at the point of accession (typically non-unique monographs and serials) are noted as a group in the accession record. |
| Examples |
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| ArchivesSpace Key | separatedmaterial |
The biographical/historical note places the materials in context by providing basic information about the materials’ creator or author. For individuals, the biographical note may include date and place of birth, full and variant forms of the name, occupations, significant accomplishments, places of residence and work, family members, and date and place of death. The SAA glossary uses “organization” generically to denote a wide range of corporate bodies, such as companies, agencies, and their internal units; legislatures and other governmental bodies; nongovernmental agencies, whether formally structured or a loose affiliation of people, such as the Red Cross or clubs, respectively.
Follow the DACS guidelines for “Administrative/Biographical History” contained in Chapter 10, and include (when known) the following information
For biographical notes about individuals:
Consider privacy and agency of the individual being described, if that person is still alive. Only use information about an individual that is already publicly available. Our collections do not necessarily fall into this category.
For organizational histories:
Some of this information may also be found in the relevant Agent record. If it is not, you may wish to copy it into its biographical/historical note.
Do not include the following types of information in the Biographical/Historical note. Instead, record where indicated below:
Example Biographical History note:
Anna Ginsberg was born in 1893 to East European immigrants D’vera and Max Ginsberg, who had settled in New York City in the late 19th century. Anna Ginsberg completed high school in New York and moved to Denver shortly thereafter, in 1910. She lived with her family on Denver’s west side, where they were actively involved in the orthodox immigrant Jewish community. In 1912 she married Morris Hayutin, who was the son of Russian Jewish immigrants and the owner of the Western Supply Company (he would later own Public Industrial Bank). Anna and Morris Hayutin had three children: Peryle (1915-2006), Irving, and Arthur.
Example Organizational History note:
The Iota Chapter of Sigma Kappa Sorority was established at the University of Denver in Denver, Colorado, on February 21, 1908. It was the first Sigma Kappa chapter to be chartered west of the Mississippi River and only the ninth chapter chartered since the founding of the sorority at Colby College in 1874. Students at the University of Denver began attempts to form a chapter in 1906, but lacked sufficient funds. In the winter of 1907-08 the Grand President of Sigma Kappa, Sara B. Mathews, visited Denver and recommended that the charter be granted.
Financial struggles of the organization and health problems of the members limited the growth of the Chapter in its early years. However, five years after the Chapter was founded, it had gained enough strength to host the 39th Convention of the Sigma Kappa Sorority. The convention was successful, with Iota Chapter offering sorority sisters Western hospitality, fun and community.
The Chapter was involved in a variety of philanthropic activities. Its primary beneficiary was the Maine Sea Coast Mission, and in later years the Chapter also helped patients with Alzheimer’s disease. The Chapter members were involved in many University activities, and strove to maintain high academic standards.
In the 1930s, the Iota Chapter acquired a house for its members. The Sigma Kappa House at 2258 S. Josephine was constructed in 1932. It was purchased by the University in 1960 and renamed for Mrs. Rollie Bradford, a Sigma Kappa alumna and member of the University of Denver Board of Trustees. The building now houses the Delta Zeta Sorority.
The Iota Chapter had 35 members in 1966, and encountered financial difficulties. The National Council of Sigma Kappa decided to close the Chapter in October 1967, although they left open the possibility of reinstating the Chapter in the future. It was not until 1988, however, that enough interest was generated to recolonize the Chapter. At that time the University invited Sigma Kappa to reopen their Iota Chapter. But by 1993 the Chapter was again experiencing financial problems, and they graduated their largest class ever. Members began sacrificing class commitments to keep the Chapter open, and it was decided to close the Chapter. On May 14, 1993, the members of Iota Chapter voted to release the National Charter it had received when it reopened five years before.