Archive research: logistical tips and lessons learned

December 2021

Last week I drove out to Milwaukee from Ann Arbor for a week-long archive expedition. I had already been in contact with archivists and librarians at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Archives and the archives at the Milwaukee Public Library. This wonderful, searchable database of Wisconsin finding aides was a tremendous help in putting together a precise list of collections, boxes, and specific folders I wanted to consult. Having sent these lists to the two archives ahead of time, they were able to have the boxes ready and waiting for me so I could maximize my reviewing time.

In preparation for my trip, I did a fair amount of research on the new technologies available to archive researchers since the last time I did archive research a decade ago. Back in 2010-2011 I did archive research at a handful of archives in Mexico City using a point-and-shoot camera digital camera. In the archives that did not allow photographs, I took notes on a laptop and even copied word-for-word entire documents.

Luckily, both the UW-M and the MPL archives allow non-flash photography. I'm sharing some tips of how I made the process work for me (and some lessons learned for next time) in hopes that this is helpful for other researchers.

Digitization with Microsoft Lens app

To create digital scans of documents, I elected to use the Microsoft Lens app on my iPhone. I get free institutional access to the Microsoft Office suite, so I'm not sure if this app has a cost for non-affiliated users. Here's how I used the app:

30-page batches. I made multi-page PDF scans of documents within individual folders. The Lens apps will allow you to add as many pages as you want to a single PDF scan, but if you want the scan to be text-searchable, you can only allow a maximum of 30 images per single PDF. I opted to scan in batches of 30 pages to keep the scans text-searchable.
Save to the cloud (OneDrive). As someone with institutional access to Microsoft Office suite, I have access to a ton of storage on Microsoft's OneDrive (I think 1TB). I saved everything directly from the app Microsoft OneDrive, which allowed me to avoid storage limits on my iPhone and also ensured the PDFs were safely stored.
Keep scans from each folder separate and clearly labeled. I created a labelling scheme for the scans I made with the Lens app. When you finish scanning a batch of 30 pages, the app will ask you to name the document and select the location where it should be saved (see above). I pre-determined an acronym for each collection I was consulting. For example, the Sherman Park Community Association Records at UW-M became "SPCAR". Then, I created a system where I indicated the box and folder where the scanned documents were located. For example, folder 12 of box 3 of the Sherman Park Community Association Records was saved as "SPCAR.b03.f12". If the folder was large and would require multiple 30-page batches, I copied and pasted this filename when saving each new batch. The app automatically appends numbers (1, 2, 3, 4...) to differentiate files of the same name, so you can let the app do that for you when scanning large folders that require multiple 30-page scans. I later compiled these separate PDFs into a single PDF for each folder.
Opt not to manually adjust frame for each image scan. The Lens app automatically tries to detect the edges of the document you are scanning. However, the app's default setting allows you to adjust the cropped image area after each scan you create. At first, I did this sort of manual adjusting after each scan. However, I later abandoned it to speed up the process. The app allows you to opt-out of the manual adjustment step. Since I'm not particularly concerned about whether the scan area includes some of the table/background, opting out of the manual adjustment was a huge help.

Equipment to bring with you to the archive

In addition to bringing your phone (and water and snacks!), there are also a few pieces of equipment that I found essential or that wish I had brought with me.

An organized list of collections, boxes, and folders you will consult. Having this list is extremely helpful for tracking your progress. I opted to create a Google Sheet that I could update as I consulted boxes. It allowed me to make decisions about skipping certain folders and to make annotations about whether I digitized the full folder, selected documents, or whether I determined the folder was not of use.
Powerbank for charging your phone. Using your phone's camera nonstop for hours will drain its battery very quickly. I made sure my phone was always plugged into a fully-charged powerbank and I never ran into battery issues.
Phone stand/tripod. I very quickly regretted not bringing the gooseneck phone stand that I own. The stand, similar to this one, clamps onto a table edge and is easily adjusted. My neck very quickly started aching due to standing, holding my phone to take photos, and looking down at my phone's camera screen for hours on end. I eventually had to switch between standing and sitting to avoid the worst of this pain, but it was pretty uncomfortable. A stand to hold the camera over the documents would have helped a lot.
Remote clicker for phone camera. In conjunction with the phone stand, I wish I had bought a remote clicker to operate my phone's camera. It would have allowed me to avoid tapping the phone screen to take a photo between each page turn. I think the combo of the remote clicker and phone stand would have greatly alleviated neck pain and generally speeded up the process.