ENG 498: Senior Seminar: Archives Etiquette

Saint Leo University Archives seeks to provide its archival materials for use in every way consistent with good scholarship and productive research. Please adhere to these simple rules of etiquette and help us ensure the long-term preservation of the archival material in our care.

1. Food and drink are not permitted in the Research/Reading Room. Remove dangling jewelry and place hair in a pony tail if long.
2. All repository materials are non-circulating and must be consulted only in Research/Reading Room.
3. Only pencils and loose leaf paper may be used in the Research/Reading Room to avoid irreversible damage to archival materials by ink. Cell phone cameras may be used without flash to document materials.  
4. Please exercise care to prevent damage to materials. Materials must not be written on, leaned on, altered, folded, traced, or handled in any way likely to inflict damage. Please notify staff of anything needing preservation attention.
5. When using archival material, please maintain the exact order of folders in a box and of items within a folder. Remove only one folder at a time from an archival box and do not remove materials from the folder. If you suspect a mistake in arrangement, call it to the attention of the staff. Do not rearrange the materials yourself.
6. Use gloves when handling photographs or other fragile materials as directed by Archives staff. Roll up sleeves.
7. Leave bookbags in locked drawer, as provided.
8. Please show your University ID and sign in to the Researcher Log. Fill out the form that you can use to request specific objects, please.
9. Familiarize yourself with the the handling procedures including guidelines on how to properly pass the objects, how to safely photograph the objects, and to always handle the objects with two hands.
10. Thank you!

Adapted from https://library.unbc.ca/archives/policies/reading-room-etiquette and from https://crln.acrl.org/index.php/crlnews/article/view/17009/18757.