Saving Alabama’s Local Records



“Many of Alabama’s local government records are in deplorable condition–threatening the destruction of this element of the documentary heritage, limiting the use of their informational content for the administration of local government, and jeopardizing the rights of the state’s citizenry. . . .”
Alabama Historical Records Advisory Board,
Assessing Alabama’s Archives


  Since 1985, the Alabama Department of Archives and History (ADAH), in cooperation with county and municipal officials, has developed records retention guidelines; trained local agencies in storing, reformatting, and conserving records; and provided publications and on-site advice. Currently, volunteers from most Alabama counties are arranging unbound probate and circuit court records for microfilming by the Genealogical Society of Utah. Some county and municipal governments have even opened their own archives.


Moisture & mold damage on 19th Century leather volumes
   Despite this progress, Alabama’s historical local government records are still endangered! In many courthouses and city halls, records lie unorganized and nearly forgotten, crammed into damp basements, rat-infested attics, or unsuitable storage buildings, where they are vulnerable to loss or damage from theft, flooding, extreme heat and humidity, mold, and vermin.
  All too often, these irreplaceable guardians of our state’s heritage – documents that embody the personal, political and property rights of Alabamians – lack the care needed to ensure their survival for future generations.

  Although preserving records is a requirement of the Code of Alabama, so far it remains an underfunded activity for Alabama’s local governments.


Vines entwine neglected county records

Meanwhile, the problems of records preservation grow more pressing every year, as new records accumulate and older ones deteriorate or disappear–sometimes to be sold at flea markets or auctioned on the internet–and new challenges arise, particularly the long-term preservation of electronic records.


Inappropriate storage areas, in this case, an old jail cell, hasten the
deterioration and disorganization of vital records.


  If Alabama’s documentary heritage is to survive, Alabama’s counties and municipalities must have more support for local records programs. Therefore, a coalition of groups including ADAH, local officials, local historical and genealogical societies, and associations of archivists is seeking funding for a records preservation grant program. A small grant–for purchasing metal shelving or acid-free storage materials, hiring a consultant to create a records preservation plan, or sending staff to records conservation workshops–may make the difference, for some Alabama local governments, between the preservation of historical records and their continuing neglect.


Historic local building (bank) finds new life as a county archives.

Proper shelving and a controlled environment preserve this county's records.

To find out more about the grant initiative and learn how you can help, please call Tom Turley or Frank Brown, ADAH Government Records Division, at (334) 242-4452 or e-mail records@archives.alabama.gov

[ADAH Seal]
http://www.archives.alabama.gov/index.html