n. (abbr. MRMC)a computer application developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s to assist in the production and indexing of finding aids from the Library of Congress Manuscript DivisionMumford 1970, 271The Master Record of Manuscript Collections is a magnetic-tape record of descriptive and statistical information on the 3,000 collections in the custody of the [Library of Congress] Manuscript Division. The record contains 98 data fields, 75 of them retrievable. There are 6 basic computer programs and 37 subprograms. The record contains reference information, accession records, processing information, statistics on use, and a central charge file. It consolidates data from five different manual fields, and has allowed a more accurate count of the number of pieces in the collection and has facilitated the preparation of statistical reports.Hickerson 1981, 24MRMC II, developed and used by the LC Manuscripts Division, is an expanded version of the MRMC system designed for administrative control. After modifying the system several times since its creation in 1967, the staff decided in 1973 that major changes were desirable. Enhancements made possible the production of catalog cards and a cumulative index to the Division’s holdings, thus providing access as well as administrative control. These modifications were based on the LC MARC II format (record structure, content, and coding) and were intended to be compatible with the MARC format for manuscripts.Barth 1997The Library of Congress (LC) acquired its first computer in 1964, which encouraged the archival staff to begin to explore new ways to use the emerging technology to facilitate access. Many limitations existed in the card-based systems already underway . . . As a result, LC developed two separate systems, the Master Record of Manuscript Collections (MRMC) to provide administrative control over holdings, and SPINDEX (emerging out of the previous punch card project) to provide automated forms of access to archival materials.LoC 2004bThe Master Record of Manuscript Collections serves as the basic guide to the division’s collections. It consists of Master Record I, a brief checklist of all collections in the division’s custody, and Master Record II, a more comprehensive catalog containing summary descriptions of collections and an index to the names and key terms cited in these descriptions. Neither Master Record I nor II has been published, but copies are available in reading rooms throughout the Library. In addition, Master Record II may be accessed through the Library’s online catalog which is available on-site and through the Internet.Trace and Dillon 2012, 507Concomitantly in the 1960s, the American library profession embarked on its pioneering efforts in automation at the national level. This included the development of the first bibliographic information network, the Ohio College Library Center (OCLC), and the development of the automated Master Record of Manuscript Collections (MRMC) by the Library of Congress, a special format for manuscripts cataloging compatible with the MARC record structure.Gilliland 2014a, 92By the late 1960s and 1970s, several large archival institutions were implementing home-grown mainframe database systems that allowed for the creation and compilation of computerized finding aids. . . . Most prominently among these mainframe systems were NARS A-1, developed by the National Archives, and SPINDEX, developed in 1964 by the Library of Congress and based on a prior punch-card project. It was used in conjunction with its Master Record of Manuscript Collections (MRMC) for administrative and intellectual control over manuscript holdings.
Notes
There were two versions of the Master Record of Manuscript Collections, referred to as MRMC I and MRMC II.
