Preservation & Conservation Links

Preservation is the "preventive maintenance" of materials, and focuses on providing the proper environment for materials (correct temperature, humidity, housing, etc.).
Archivists work with preservation issues every day, and tend to refer other problems requiring more intense, physical interventions to conservation professionals, or conservators.

Conservation generally includes steps taken to actively repair damaged materials, such as broken emulsion on photographs, pigment flaking off paintings, torn papers, and other such situations.

The following links begin with Preservation resources, followed by Conservation resources. This list is by no means complete, but will serve as a beginning point for your research.

AHA! Quick Reference Preservation Flyers
A PDF file of flyers featuring basic preservation information for photographs, documents, digital media, and more, including general storage environment and organization tips.

Caring for Your Collections
Library of Congress' recommendations for general preservation of materials in various formats.

Preservation 101
A brief on-line course in preservation basics.

Sources for Supplies
Order on-line or request a paper catalog from the following vendors of archival quality photo albums, storage boxes, and more:
Metal Edge Inc. | Light Impressions | Hollinger Corporation | University Products

Salvage at a Glance
Chart with information on handling water damaged materials of various formats, from CoOL (Conservation On-Line, Stanford University).

Northeast Document Conservation Center
Conservation services, continuing education workshops, leaflets related to preservation planning and strategies, and more.

National Park Service Conserve-O-Grams
An extensive list of preservation leaflets and general information relevant to proper storage environments, housings, disaster recovery strategies, and more.

American Insitute for the Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works
Includes information on "Selecting a Conservator" in your area, for the material types you have.
List of private Texas area conservators, as provided by University of Texas at Austin.