n. (also re-housing)the physical transfer of archival resources into new containersJames 1977, 148Having invested three years in the cleaning and rehousing of the negatives, it was clearly unacceptable to expose them to regular handling.Conway 1990, 220The questionnaire asked respondents to indicate which of the following six actions are routinely carried out in the unit: rehousing in acid-free containers, segregating acidic paper, segregating photographic media, removing fasteners, copying deteriorated items, and “other” holdings maintenance actions.Gertz 1990, 227On the local level, however, while most archival and manuscript repositories make conscientious efforts in the areas of rehousing and environmental control, few have been able thus far to concentrate on the institution-wide systematic planning that results in the most effective and efficient preservation effort.NPS 1990b, J:45The records were refoldered in acid-free folders. The unlabelled cloth and paper report binders were badly distorted, and according to the curator did not warrant conservation. These were stabilized by rehousing in an acid-free box.Ewing 1991, 178Staff instructed participants in appropriate methods of handling scrapbooks, identification of preservation/conservation needs on a checklist, preparing accession worksheets and narrative descriptions, and rehousing items in acid-free containers. Participants working on the Technical Files (a vertical file collection, located in the museum building, that is a mainstay of the NASM ready-reference operation) received instruction in sorting and rehousing materials by media type, labeling folders, and anticipating possible filing errors.Ritzenthaler 1993, 113While major rehousing cannot be accomplished as a part of this preservation review, fragile or vulnerable materials can be placed in folders or polyester sleeves.NPS 1996, D:21Simultaneous with rehousing, have an archivist arrange and describe the collection. . . . ¶ During and after rehousing and arrangement, prepare adequate descriptive tools (folder lists, indices, and finding aids) to each collection so as to discourage unnecessary handling of materials.Schrock 1996, 207Holdings maintenance: Physical stabilization of a collection through a systematic program of rehousing within protective enclosures and storage in a stable environment. Work is done on the collection level by trained archives technicians.Weideman 2006, 275The standards included arrangement at the series level only, rehousing of materials into acid-free folders and boxes, a written finding aid consisting of a summary introduction to the papers, a box and folder listing, and a catalog record.Douglas and MacNeil 2009, 31Although they are done for practical reasons, the re-housing of the records into acid-free folders and boxes, and the meticulous numbering and stamping of each document communicate a significance and monumentality the records likely did not possess while they were in the custody of the writer.Meehan 2010, 32Each accession may receive, in whole or part, some level of treatment that could involve simple re-housing or preliminary processing so that the material can be accessed by researchers, with no clear documentation of what has been done when and why.Ritzenthaler 2010, 187Therefore, preservation priorities for rehousing must be established, weighing such factors as the relative use and value of the materials, their chemical stability, and the condition of the housing containers.Ritzenthaler 2010, 247Other groups of material that are received in sturdy serviceable boxes that are capable of supporting their contents may represent a low priority for rehousing, even if chemically the boxes do not meet current preservation requirements.Hackbart-Dean and Slomba 2012, 59Another step in processing is holdings maintenance—basic preservation procedures that are incorporated into processing activities. These include rehousing material within acid-free boxes and folders, removing damaging fasteners, photocopying highly acidic pages to preserve them, taking letters out of envelopes, and providing individual enclosures for photographs.Miller 2013, 523If rehousing is performed, it would maintain the arrangement of materials as received from the creator and would occur before the collection is digitized.Matusiak and Johnston 2014, 255The process of rehousing consisted of inserting the negatives into acid-free envelopes, assigning identifiers, and placing the envelopes into archival boxes.AAA 2015When considering re-housing audiovisual media, it’s important to realize that re-housing does not equal preservation, although it can be an aspect of a preservation strategy.Frizzell 2018, 114Encouraged by this perspective, my work as a journeyman archivist primarily entailed finding creative, efficient ways to render artifacts physically and digitally accessible while also enhancing their longevity through preservation-minded rehousing. One of my favorite aspects of this project was partnering with Richard to assess which of the museum’s collections were candidates for rehousing, work that was informed by artifact condition, current storage methods, and available resources.Note 2019, 60Processing also includes some preservation activities, such as rehousing materials in archival enclosures.Kistler Mattock 2020, 185It can also be argued that the rearrangement and rehousing of the materials, along with the physical separation of materials of different media types, is necessary to ensure the continued preservation of the materials in the archives—one of the original aims of the donation.Ewalt 2021, 9Preservation activities also included rehousing all materials into archival document storage containers and refolding [sic] select items such as loose documents.Eagle Yun 2021b, 43Rehousing, like archival processing, must be extensible and justified based on the appraisal and assessment by the archivist. . . . Rehousing and physical arrangement should be performed on an as-needed basis, articulated through the transparent documentation of the reasons for performing this work.Punzalan and Marsh 2022, 45Archival processing, the process of organizing, rehousing, and describing materials for public access, is the core function that shapes how a collection is accessed by future generations.Faulder and Jackson 2022, 161With the advent of minimal processing, more analog “processing” tasks (mostly aggregate description and simple rehousing) are pushed to some degree of completeness in the accessioning stage.Hammond et al. 2024, 8For the rehousing of glass plates, it is recommended to use high quality, lignin-free, sulfur-free, alum-free, pH 7-8.5 paper stock, meeting the requirements of the American National Standards.Zamon 2024, 48However, in some cases, certain types of rehousing may allow you to save space and other resources.adj. (also re-housing)relating to the physical transfer of archival resources into new containersRitzenthaler 1993, 13During the course of a year, environmental monitoring can provide the documentation necessary to influence funding sources, while staff training and rehousing initiatives will achieve immediate benefits for the holdings.Ritzenthaler et al. 2006, 283After use and before placement on storage shelving again can be a good time to solve minor rehousing problems noted during researcher use, such as a need for plastic sleeves on photos with brittle mounts.Sinn 2013, 250Archivists said they utilized students’ work as much as possible, even given the range of quality in the final products (arranged collections, rehoused materials, descriptions, etc.).Meissner 2019, 83As we arrange files, the majority of our rehousing work takes place.Sorensen 2021, 117Documenting the format and any markings on the tape or film can or case and noting any immediate rehousing measures are important steps here and relate to documentation and access; description and condition assessment can happen at the same time.Hammond et al. 2024, 8Per the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration recommendations, glass plate photographs should be categorized as: complete glass plates, minor flaking plates, significant flaking plates, and broken glass plates. Each of these categorizations also has their own rehousing procedure.
Notes
Rehousing usually supports preservation needs and can occur during accessioning, arrangement, or reprocessing.
