Archival materials, such as audiovisual recordings, correspondence, diaries, journals, photographs, unpublished manuscripts, and other media, are essential to research and provide insights not found in other sources. Just as critical citation starts with your research process, archival materials require careful and critical reading before being used and cited in research.
Working with archives involves developing primary source literacy, that is, a “range of knowledge, skills, and abilities required to effectively use primary sources” (SAA-ACRL/RBMS Joint Task Force on the Development of Guidelines for Primary Source Literacy, 2018, p. 1).
Key aspects to consider when working with archival materials include:
Archives reflect the biases, perspectives, and priorities of their creators, as well as the institutions and heritage workers where these materials are stewarded. Researchers with primary source literacy will: "[c]ritically evaluate the perspective of the creator(s) of a primary source, including tone, subjectivity, and biases, and consider how these relate to the original purpose(s) and audience(s) of the source" (SAA-ACRL/RBMS Joint Task Force on the Development of Guidelines for Primary Source Literacy, 5)
Archives do not provide a complete historical record and there are silences and gaps as a result of broader societal power structures determining whose voices are recorded and collected (Brown, 2020; Butler, 2019; Carter, 2006; Caswell, 2017; Luster, 2018; Trouillot, 1995). For this reason, "[u]sers must seek to understand resulting silences and absences by critically considering what sources were never created, what sources may no longer exist, and what sources are collected, as well as communities' abilities to engage in these activities" (SAA-ACRL/RBMS Joint Task Force on the Development of Guidelines for Primary Source Literacy, 2018, p. 3).
When working with archives, researchers must be aware of legal, ethical, and cultural protocols pertaining to research with archival materials, such as those informing privacy, confidentiality, copyright, cultural and intellectual property, among other concerns. Just because a researcher can access archives in a cultural heritage institution, does not mean a researcher should use these archives in their research without first reflecting on broader ethical considerations, since some archival materials may have been created, collected, and made accessible to researchers in ways that are not respectful of, and accountable to, creators and communities of origin (Berry, 2021; Colwell, 2017; Drake, 2016; First Archivist Circle, 2007; Sentance, 2017; Younging, 2018, p. 92).
Style guides, such as APA, Chicago Manual of Style, and MLA have guidelines for how to cite archival materials (American Psychological Association, 2019; Chicago Manual of Style, 2024, 14.119-14.129; Rappaport, 2018), and occasionally repositories will also provide direction (Archives of Ontario, 2020; National Archives and Records Administration, 2010; Library and Archives Canada, 2024).
American Psychological Association. (2019). “Archival documents and collections.” https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/references/archival
Archives of Ontario. (2020). Customer Service Guide 107. Citing Archival Records. Queen's Printer for Ontario. https://www.archives.gov.on.ca/en/access/documents/customer_service_guide_107_citing_archival_records.pdf.
Berry, Dorothy. (2021). The House Archives Built, up//root. https://www.uproot.space/features/the-house-archives-built.
Brown, Elspeth H. 2020. “Archival Activism, Symbolic Annihilation, and the LGBTQ2+ Community Archive”. Archivaria 89 (May), 6-33. https://archivaria.ca/index.php/archivaria/article/view/13729.
Butler, Sarah Funke. (2019 October). “Closing the Gender Gap in the Historical Record through Stories in Women’s Archives.” TEDxVienna. https://www.ted.com/talks/sarah_funke_butler_closing_the_gender_gap_in_the_historical_record_through_stories_in_women_s_archives?utm_campaign=tedspread&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=tedcomshare
Caswell, Michelle. (July 2017). “Teaching to Dismantle White Supremacy in Archives,” The Library Quarterly: Information, Community, Policy, Volume 87, Number 3.
Chicago Manual of Style. (2024) “Manuscript Collections.” https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/book/ed18/part3/ch14/psec119.html
Colwell, Chip. (2017 July). “Why Museums are Returning Cultural Treasures.” TEDxMileHigh. https://www.ted.com/talks/chip_colwell_why_museums_are_returning_cultural_treasures?utm_campaign=tedspread&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=tedcomshare
Carter, Rodney G.S. (2006) “Of Things Said and Unsaid: Power, Archival Silences, and Power in Silences.” Archivaria 6, 215-233.
Drake, Jarrett M.. (2016) RadTech Meets RadArch: Towards A New Principle for Archives and Archival Description. On Archivy. https://medium.com/on-archivy/radtech-meets-radarch-towards-a-new-principle-for-archives-and-archival-description-568f133e4325
First Archivist Circle. (2007) Protocols for Native American Archival Materials. https://www2.nau.edu/libnap-p/protocols.html.
Library and Archives Canada. (2024). Crediting and citing Library and Archives Canada material. https://library-archives.canada.ca/eng/services/public/using-lac-material/crediting-citing-material/Pages/credit-citing-material.aspx.
Luster, Dominique. (2018 June). “Archives Have the Power to Boost Marginalized Voices.” TEDxPittsburgh. https://www.ted.com/talks/dominique_luster_archives_have_the_power_to_boost_marginalized_voices?utm_campaign=tedspread&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=tedcomshare.
National Archives and Records Administration. (2010). Citing Records in the National Archives of the United States. Washington, DC. National Archives and Records Administration. https://www.archives.gov/files/publications/general-info-leaflets/17-citing-records.pdf
Rappaport, Jennifer. (2018 April 25). “A Guide to Citing Materials from Physical Archives and Collections.” https://style.mla.org/citing-materials-physical-archives/.
SAA-ACRL/RBMS Joint Task Force on the Development of Guidelines for Primary Source Literacy. Guidelines for Primary Source Literacy. 2018. https://www2.archivists.org/sites/all/files/Guidelines%20for%20Primary%20Souce%20Literacy_AsApproved062018_1.pdf
Sentance, N. (2017, 21 July). Maker unknown and the decentring First Nations People [blog post]. Archival Decolonist. https://archivaldecolonist.com/2017/07/21/maker-unknown-and-the-decentring-first-nations-people/.
Trouillot, Michel-Rolph. (1995) Silencing the Past: Power and the Production of History. Boston: Beacon Press.
Younging, Gregory. (2018). Elements of Indigenous Style: A Guide for Writing By and About Indigenous Peoples. Brush Education.
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