At 3/24/04 05:50 PM Wednesday, Tee12090@aol.com wrote: *********START OF ORIGINAL MESSAGE TEXT********* >Hi my name is Tina Renee Patterson (Broyles). My father is Kelcy Ray >Broyles >and I was trying to start the family treetoo. His father is James W. >Broyles >and mother is Lena Heatherly. If you have anything to help please e-mail >me >at tee12090@aol.com thanks take care **********END OF ORIGINAL MESSAGE TEXT*********** Hello Cousin Tina, You sent your query to our BROYLES Mailing List, but you must first be subscribed in order to post there. I assume that you meant to be subscribed, so I am taking the liberty of doing so now. If you don't want to belong to the List, just let me know and I'll unsub you immediately. I'm also forwarding the above query on to the List so others there may help you. I think that John "Ken" BROYLES will probably do a lookup in his published "Broyles Family Ties" and find your grandfather. If so, he will email the List with the information. You will, of course, receive a copy of his post, as well as those of all who post there. You didn't say where you live. I am in Knoxville, TN, just for information's sake. Hope to hear from you again, SgtGeorge George W. Durman BROYLES Mailing List Manager -- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 7.0.230 / Virus Database: 262.6.0 - Release Date: 3/24/04

At 3/23/04 09:22 AM Tuesday, steve.broyles@teradyne.com wrote: *********START OF ORIGINAL MESSAGE TEXT********* >George, John N.'s line is John, Jacob, Michael, Aaron, Michael, William. >The little I have on John N. is found at > >http://users.rcn.com/deeds/broyles/html/d0005/g0000073.htm#I2278 > >His "Keith" number is 4905, which might be useful looking him up in Ken >Broyles's CD. **********END OF ORIGINAL MESSAGE TEXT*********** Thanks Steve, I guess I could have looked up John N. in "Keith" or on the CD, but I've done that so many times with nothing much to start with that it just got to where it was eating up all my time. I get the feeling sometimes that people who aren't really that used to computers, and the Web/Internet, think everything just magically appears there, including all their ancestry information. It would be nice were that so, wouldn't it? (GRIN) I've been extremely busy trying to add ancestry data for our Germanna families on the website and now realize that when I first started those pages I started a trend that wasn't very helpful. I allowed users to send me information, which I then posted, with only things like "Descendant of So-and-So", "Descended from John BROYLES and Hans Jacob BROYLES", etc., which is not at all helpful for others looking for researchers of their own lines/branches. I'm now slowly going back and looking up what I can, especially full ancestry trees with spouses. But, I'll get it all done one of these days. Thanks again, George -- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 7.0.229 / Virus Database: 262.5.8 - Release Date: 3/22/04

George, John N.'s line is John, Jacob, Michael, Aaron, Michael, William. The little I have on John N. is found at http://users.rcn.com/deeds/broyles/html/d0005/g0000073.htm#I2278 His "Keith" number is 4905, which might be useful looking him up in Ken Broyles's CD.

Hello Cousin Ethelyn, I am George W. Durman, the manager of the Germanna Colonies Family History Website and all its attendant pages. You wouldn't find your name or email address on the BROYLES/BRILES page unless you have send me the information on your ancestry from the emigrant Johannes BREHEL (John BROYLES), down to you. Telling me that you descend from the line of John N. BROYLES and Susannah SMITH (from Campbell, TN) doesn't really help a lot. I need to know your ancestry from the emigrant all the way down to you. Otherwise, including your information won't help very much for others who might be researching the same line. The CD you purchased from John K. (Ken) BROYLES, Sr., is totally separate from the website I maintain. I just mentioned his publications on the site and cannot be responsible for what he has, or does not have, on the CD. Just for your information, his CD has ONLY information that "HAS BEEN SENT TO HIM BY OTHERS". I'm not sure just what you expect to find on the Internet/Web, but those of us who try to help others are not Gods of any sort! We do not know the ancestry of every person in the world. We do not know where every BROYLES descendant lives, nor what their ancestry line back to Germany is. (I'm hope I don't sound like a "Smart-Alec", or like I'm being insulting, but, really, we DON'T know everything. [GRIN] ) Now, to find your BROYLES ancestry, you need to send me the names of your parents; then the names of your BROYLES grandfather, and his wife; then the name of HIS father and mother; as far back as you know. We have lots of information on the BROYLES clans in this part of Tennessee, but need some information to go on. (My mother's maiden name was BROYLES, and she came from Washington Co., TN. I'm now located in Knoxville. We know lots of BROYLES people who left Washington and Greene Counties and mossied on up to Campbell, Scott, and Grainger Counties. But, considering how many BROYLES children every BROYLES man had, it is difficult to trace them all without a little help.) Send me whatever information you have and I'll do my best to trace your line back to the Germanna emigrant in VA. Won't promise you anything, but I'll try. It would also help if you would do some research yourself on birth, marriage, and death records for our BROYLES ancestors. Might take a little work, but you can do it. Yer Cuz, George W. Durman At 2/20/04 12:59 PM Friday, you wrote: *********START OF ORIGINAL MESSAGE TEXT********* >I am not finding My name or email address. Ethelyn (Broyles) Smith. Email >address is rest@ria.net. From the line of John N. Broyles and Susannah >Smith >from Campbell TN. > >Also bought your CD of Broyles Family Line called Broyles Family >Newsletter >by John K Broyles, Sr. I can not find our family informaiton on it. Do you >have any suggestions as to how or where to find it? > >Thanks >Ethelyn Smith > > >==== BROYLES Mailing List ==== >To unsubscribe from BROYLES, send an e-mail message to: > BROYLES-L-request@rootsweb.com (for individual messages) > BROYLES-D-request@rootsweb.com (for Digest mode) >Subject: unsubscribe >In the body include only one word: unsubscribe >(Turn OFF your signature file when sending this command) > >============================== >Gain access to over two billion names including the new Immigration >Collection with an Ancestry.com free trial. Click to learn more. >http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=4930&sourceid=1237 **********END OF ORIGINAL MESSAGE TEXT*********** -- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 7.0.229 / Virus Database: 262.5.8 - Release Date: 3/22/04

Well, this old chicken will keep pecking away and hoping that a few brain cells will work. Thank you for sharing your knowledge, skill and encouragement. Joyce

Thanks George, for taking the time to give of yourself. Cinda

At 3/12/04 09:16 PM Friday, BrownsSRQ@aol.com wrote: *********START OF ORIGINAL MESSAGE TEXT********* >Thank you, George for some good ideas and reassurances that >I will not damage the old archival family pictures -- some of >which or tin prints. I sure appreciate your tips and help. How'd >a cuz of mine get so smart? > >Many Thanks, Joyce **********END OF ORIGINAL MESSAGE TEXT*********** So smart? It's not smarts -- even a chicken can be taught a few things if it's taught long enough. After so many years, SOME- THING has to stick in the brain cells! Reminds me of a fellow I knew during my 22 years of service in the USAF. We were discussing some of the "old heads" one day and commenting on their years of experience. Someone piped up, "Yeah, most people do gain from additional years of experience, but old Sgt. Xxxxxxxxxx has been in for 20 years and all he has is 20 1-year experiences!" (The old Sgt. forgot his training almost as soon as he received it.) Yer Cuz, George -- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 7.0.225 / Virus Database: 262.4.3 - Release Date: 3/11/04

Thank you, George for some good ideas and reassurances that I will not damage the old archival family pictures -- some of which or tin prints. I sure appreciate your tips and help. How'd a cuz of mine get so smart? Many Thanks, Joyce

At 3/10/04 08:05 PM Wednesday, BrownsSRQ@aol.com wrote: *********START OF ORIGINAL MESSAGE TEXT********* >Slides and negative scanning -- you are light years ahead of me. I am >just >trying to do simple scanning (b & w) of old family photos into appropriate > >written text about family members. Can these old photos be damaged by the > >scanning process? Would it be better to take digital camera pictures of >these old >photos and put into the computer for printing? Thanks for the tip to keep >these >old pictures in the climate controlled bank safe deposit box. >Thanks, Cuz Joyce **********END OF ORIGINAL MESSAGE TEXT*********** Hi Cousin Joyce, No, the photos aren't harmed by the scanning process. They've already been exposed to more light than they would receive if scanned thousands of times. As to taking digital pictures of photos, you COULD do that, but the results would much less than satisfactory. I've scanned lots of old B&W pictures and haven't harmed them in any way. A word or two about scanning photos. To get the best file from which to print, one should only scan at a resolution that is as high as the printer will print. I've seen recommendations that one scan at 72 dpi and that just won't work! Yes, you can do it, but you'll be able to print only at a very, very small size without losing resolution and sharpness. How to scan should always be dictated by the graphics program you use, how much memory and resources it uses, how much RAM you have on your system, etc. I usually scan really good pictures at 360 or 720 dpi. It depends on how they look at each resolution. My printer, even a very old one, will print at 1440 dpi, but scanning at that resolution will make a very, very large file, and will take up all the RAM on most users' systems, especially if anything else is running while scanning. I've scanned and printed pictures at 360 dpi that actually look much better than the originals. It all depends on the graphics program you use. I use Paint Shop Pro (PSP and no advertising plug here, just reporting what I use) and the latest versions of it allow some great restoration techniques. Of course, there are a few such programs on the market, but they cost hundreds and hundreds of dollars more than PSP. I like PSP's "One Touch" utility, which doesn't always give the best results, but I always try it first, then, if it doesn't do the job I want, I go back and start over, manually tweaking color, brightness, contrast, sharpness, etc. I did one recently which was a picture of my wife's sister, taken in the 1950's. It was in color and had yellowed with age. Everything that should have been blue in the picture was, or course, green, due to the yellowing. Green things such as grass and tree leaves, were yellow-green, and other colors were off a lot. I used "One Touch" on it, but then had to correct the blue-green-yellow aspects of the picture. It turned out very nice, although my wife says her sister's shorts are the wrong color blue, as if she could really remember the color after 50 years! Here's a tip on scanning thin documents, such as newspaper, in which print on the reverse side show through. On thing that really bugs me is to receive a file that someone has sent me, especially of a newspaper article or picture, and it can hardly be read because of the print on the reverse showing through. To prevent this, place the article you want to scan in your scanner, THEN place a piece of black paper on top of it! The resulting picture will be a little darker than it would normally be, but you will NOT see the print on the reverse side, and can always lighten the entire picture in the graphics program. Gotta run, Yer Cuz, George -- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 7.0.225 / Virus Database: 262.4.3 - Release Date: 3/11/04

Slides and negative scanning -- you are light years ahead of me. I am just trying to do simple scanning (b & w) of old family photos into appropriate written text about family members. Can these old photos be damaged by the scanning process? Would it be better to take digital camera pictures of these old photos and put into the computer for printing? Thanks for the tip to keep these old pictures in the climate controlled bank safe deposit box. Thanks, Cuz Joyce

At 3/7/04 09:27 PM Sunday, BrownsSRQ@aol.com wrote: *********START OF ORIGINAL MESSAGE TEXT********* >Thanks, George. I needed to hear this. > >Some time you or someone might like to share about scanning >our precious pictures into the written text about our families. >Many Thanks, Joyce **********END OF ORIGINAL MESSAGE TEXT*********** Hi Cousin Joyce, I'd be glad to discuss scanning. I've had a scanner for a long time, and just recently retired it for one that will do slides and negatives, in addition to the normal pictures and documents. I'm learning a lot about scanning old slides that date back to the early 1960's. Don't ever wait 40 years to do something about your slides! They keep better than photos, but do deteriorate over the years. I have several thousand slides and don't have even 100 done yet! Lots of correction is needed for the old ones. I use Paint Shop Pro (PSP), and, fortunately, it makes the job of fixing the slides much easier. The colors of them tend to shift to the yellow spectrum after that many years. Let me know what you would like discussed and we can go from there. Yer Cuz, George -- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 7.0.225 / Virus Database: 262.4.1 - Release Date: 3/9/04

Folks, something happened to me tonight that I thought I should pass on to illustrate how useful some computer security programs really are. I did a Copernic search for websites that dealt with Eudora (my email program) settings/configuration. I don't know which site did the damage, but it changed my default web browser Start-Up page to a commercial site advertising all kinds of software. Then, every time I opened the web browser, and every time I went to a different website or page, pop-up windows opened all over the place. I almost drove me crazy! After about an hour of trying to configure my AdSubtract to disallow pop-ups for the sites I was visiting, I finally got smart. I realized it wasn't the sites I was visiting that were opening the pop-ups! It had to be "SpyWare". I ran AdAware and found 43 gremlins. One was the one that changed my web browser startup page, no matter if I reconfigured the web browser to start with a page of my choice. The other 42 were dastardly Registry entries that caused the web browser to automatically open pop- up windows for advertisements every time I opened a new website, or a new page on a website. Danged near drove me crazy. Anyway, I deleted those pieces of &*^%$#(%* and things are OK again. Just wanted to send this to illustrate how useful some of these computer security programs/utilities are. If it had happened to you, and you didn't have AdAware or SpyBot, you would have been sorely troubled, and not been able to fix the problem. Please take all the suggestions and recommendations I gave in the original post very seriously. These days it's not just viruses and worms that can cause you problems -- more and more websites are putting crud on their sites that virtually take over your web browser. If it hasn't happened to you yet, you're lucky -- but, it will get you one of these days. Regards, SgtGeorge George W. Durman List Manager -- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 7.0.225 / Virus Database: 262.4.1 - Release Date: 3/9/04

Thanks, George. I needed to hear this. Some time you or someone might like to share about scanning our precious pictures into the written text about our families. Many Thanks, Joyce

At 3/6/04 08:01 PM Saturday, Norma F. Jennings wrote: *********START OF ORIGINAL MESSAGE TEXT********* >George, with your permission I would like to republish your information on >preserving documents on our Louisa County Genealogical Society's mailing >list. I think our members would appreciate it but I don't want to infringe >on your copyrights. > >Thank You >Sincerely, > >Norma Jennings **********END OF ORIGINAL MESSAGE TEXT*********** Hello Norma, Go right ahead. It was sent with the expectation that it would be passed on. It's important information for all. George -- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 7.0.225 / Virus Database: 262.2.1 - Release Date: 3/5/04

George, with your permission I would like to republish your information on preserving documents on our Louisa County Genealogical Society's mailing list. I think our members would appreciate it but I don't want to infringe on your copyrights. Thank You Sincerely, Norma Jennings

(continued from Part 3) HOW TO GET STARTED PRESERVING OLD PHOTOGRAPHS: The first step is to identify what the pictures show, because only photos that are identified and labeled are worth preserving. Sometimes it's best to start with your most current photos and work backward in time. Note what's going on in the picture, who's in it and where the photo was taken. Date the photo as closely as you can. Write the information on the back of the photo with a soft 6B drawing pencil, which is available in art supply shops. Be sure to use people's real names if you know them, not just associations like mother or grandfather. For home movies, write the identifications on the leader. Note when it was shot, by whom and what the event is. Home movies can be very difficult to identify. If possible, sit down with the person who made the movie, ask them to narrate it and take notes. Many people have old photos in their collections that are often unidentifiable. You often can't say with certainty whether the person shown is a family member. Set the pictures aside and work on them last. Put your energy into the ones that can be identified. After you've identified the photos, work on storing them properly. There are two primary ways to store photographic prints - using a filing system in archival boxes or using photo albums. Use file photos in archival boxes if you have a lot of photos to arrange. You can organize the pictures in files by subject, person, or year. Once the pictures are organized, you can pick the best and put them in an album. It's important to use acid free folders and boxes. The acids in paper products can be harmful to photos. Albums allow you to display pictures more easily, but also tend to be more expensive than filing. Some of the best pre-made albums are manufactured by Webway, a Minnesota company (do a web search for "Webway Photoalbums"). Again, seek out acid-free papers and notebooks made from archival board. Or you can buy clear plastic pages made from polypropylene and insert the photos. Do not use vinyl pages or notebooks. They emit harmful vapors and shorten the life of photos. In general, don't take apart existing photo albums. They're like diaries and scrapbooks; they have a personal story and order to them. Often they contain the handwriting of the person who made them. If the photos in an old album have become loose because of detached or missing photo corners, replace the photo corners. The exception to the "don't take apart rule" is magnetic photo albums. They contain a sticking material that is detrimental to photos, and they need to be taken apart. People buy them because they allow you to easily arrange photos on a page, but photo corners allow easy management too. Slides can be stored in boxes or carousel trays if you keep the lid on; they are very susceptible to dust, light, and extreme heat or cold. Non-vinyl slide pages can also be used. And if you have slides, photo CDs, home movies, or home videos, be sure to save the hardware that you'll need to view them. You'll need that equipment to enjoy your images, when the technology becomes obsolete in the future PRESERVING NEGATIVES: It's very important to save your negatives. Many people think negatives are a nuisance, but they are the originals and they'll allow you to make new prints if a print is destroyed. Negatives last well if they're not handled. Keep them in polyethylene or polypropylene sleeves. (A word about scanning photos, slides, and negatives. Scanning photos, no matter how high a resolution you use to scan, will almost always appear "grainy" if you increase their size beyond that of the originals. Slides and negatives, on the other hand, have such a high resolution that you can scan them and increase the size of printed pictures without degrading the quality. As an example, if you scan a 5x7 photo and increase its size in your computer graphics program to, say, 10x14, to print out a very large picture, it WILL be "grainy" and have no "sharpness"; scanning the negative from which the photo was originally made will allow you to increase the size greatly without degrading the quality of the picture.) Exposure to light can hurt photos. Locate framed pictures on the least sunny walls in your house. Better yet, make a copy of the photo and keep the original in dark storage. Metal frames are preferable to wood (wood contains acids). Use a 100 percent rag matte board and remove any wooden backing used in old frames. Dark storage is especially important for color photos, such as children's school portraits. Some studios do not process them properly, making them more susceptible to color changes. Since they come in multiples, display one and keep one in storage. If it changes color, have a black and white photo made. The absolute best film to use, if you want your pictures to be around for your grandchildren and their children, is black and white. Most color photos fade over time. If black and white pictures don't seem appropriate or possible, then take color prints or slides. Prints have the advantage of being easier to view, and they don't accumulate dust as much as slides. Instant pictures are good for parties and games only. They're likely to disappear in 10 years, so when you're going to document an important event, leave your instant camera at home. If you're going to purchase a digital camera for photos, make sure it will take pictures with a HIGH resolution and in large sizes. Older digital cameras, and newer inexpensive ones, usually took pictures of very small sizes and resolutions. You can't take a graphic from one of those cameras and increase its size beyond about 3x5 inches. Copy photography is the way to save the images on torn or defaced photographs. A basic rule in photograph preservation is to leave the original just the way it is. The copy photographer uses retouched copy negatives or copy prints to bring back the image. -------------------------------------------------------------------- I hope this will help some of you with your photographs and documents, both old and new. Regards, SgtGeorge George W. Durman -- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 7.0.225 / Virus Database: 262.2.1 - Release Date: 3/5/04

(continued from Part 2) MORE TIPS FOR PRESERVING OLD PHOTOGRAPHS AND DOCUMENTS: Since the beginning of time, mankind has been recording history; however, only within the past 150 years have we been able to document history photographically. What we learn about our past provides a transition from our ancestors to our offspring. Photographs provide a graphic portrayal of yesterday, but if we neglect and do not preserve our photographs, some of our history will fade away along with those images. DETERIORATION: ENVIRONMENTAL - Temperature and humidity affect photographs and documents more than any other element. Best conditions are under 70 degree F with the relative humidity under 50%. High humidity is most harmful and high temperatures accelerate the deterioration. Cyclic conditions (High heat and humidity followed by cold and dry weather, followed by high heat, etc.) are very bad for film emulsion and may cause cracking and separation of the emulsion from the support. AVOID THE FOLLOWING: Attics and Basements - The worst places to store your photographs or documents is in an un-insulated attic or basement. In the summer, temperatures in an attic could reach 125 degrees F, while in the winter they can get down to less than 0 degrees. With the constant high temperatures and humidity in the summer and low temperatures and humidity in the winter, the photographs or documents will become brittle. In severe cases, the emulsion (image) on the photograph can separate from the base (paper). These cyclic conditions will have a devastating effect on any paper product. Un-insulated basements are usually moist, which can cause photographs to stick to each other. Another problem encountered in basements is that they are great breeding grounds for insects and rodents which are strongly attracted to gelatin and cellulose in the photographic emulsion. The best places to store important photographs or documents are in a safe deposit box at your bank. They are usually climate controlled and kept dark to provide almost ideal storage conditions. The ideal storage conditions are 68 degrees +/- 2 degrees and 50% relative humidity +/- 5% relative humidity. Wood, Paper and Paper Products - Wood and papers contain harmful additives such as bleach or hydrogen peroxide. Use only paper products that are acid free. Proper storage containers are available from archival suppliers (see below). Miscellaneous Materials - Rubber bands or rubber cement contain sulphur which degrades photographic emulsions. Paper clips can abrade or scratch the surfaces of prints or negatives. Pressure sensitive tapes usually contains acids which can accelerate the deterioration process. Any kind of ink also contains acids. Fingerprints on prints or negatives create physical damage from the oils and acids in human skin . Fumes and Vapors - from oil-based paints, varnishes, shellac, carbon monoxide (automobiles stored in garages), and photocopiers, including laser copiers cause serious damage to photographs and documents. (Most photocopiers produce ozone as a by-product; ozone acts as a bleach and the fumes may accelerate the deterioration). Also, the intense light and heat from copiers are detrimental to photographs. SAFE STORAGE: Paper - Use only lignin-free (lignin is from paper pulp), acid-free, un-buffered paper. Use this paper to store photographs or as interleaving paper in albums. Plastics - Any of the following plastics are safe to use in storing photographs, negatives or documents: Polyester, Mylar, Polypropylene, Polyethylene, and Tyvek. (continued in Part 4) -- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 7.0.225 / Virus Database: 262.2.1 - Release Date: 3/5/04

(continued from Part 1) HOW TO HYDRATE OLD DOCUMENTS THAT ARE HARD AND BRITTLE, AND HOW TO REPAIR THEM: Old documents are often rolled or folded and stuck in cedar chests and drawers for years before someone moves them to another drawer. They are aged in their shape and can break with handling. They are dry and need to be hydrated. Look around your home for a container with a tight fitting lid (not so tight fitting that the container needs to be tipped for a grip to take off the lid). One container that can be used is a new galvanized garbage can; try to find a small one if all you have is a few letter size documents. Inside the (clean) container, place a heavy bowl with a flat bottom. Inside of THIS bowl, place a glass of water. Documents can be placed, several at a time, around outside of the bowl in the large container (outside of the water please). Make sure they are stable enough not to tip over into the water. Place the lid on the container and leave it alone for several hours. Needless to say, this whole thing should be out of the way of dogs, children, and mothers who insist on constantly dusting! Put it in a spare room and close the door. After several hours, check the paper. Flex it to check how well it unrolls, unfolds, or just feels right. (It's like making dough - you learn the feel.) Some papers hydrate very quickly. A super thick post-Victorian wedding certificate might need to be left in as long as 24 hours, but many papers hydrate in six hours. Purchase white blotter paper in an art supply store. Lay one sheet of blotter paper down on a table, and spread the documents as flat as possible on the blotter paper. Check to make sure folded edges are unfolded, and torn edges close together. A set of stamp collector tweezers is perfect for this job and other steps to follow. Place another blotter paper on top. Weigh down this whole thing with heavy books (one use for an encyclopedia set). The blotter paper will absorb any excess moisture and mold is rarely a problem. Leave the documents pressed for 12 to 24 hours. If they roll when uncovered, they either need to be pressed more or they possibly need hydrated more (although that's very rare). After uncovering the documents, you can begin repair. Odd smudges of dirt and pencil can be encouraged off with a Pink Pearl eraser. Don't use any other kind. Other types of cleaning products should only be used by professionals, and the Pink Pearl eraser should be used with extreme caution. There is a special repair tape called "Filmoplast" (transparent). (Do a web search for "Filmoplast"; you will find dozens of sources.) The back of the document should always be repaired first. The Filmoplast tape is pH neutral and doesn't yellow. It also can be removed and applied again during the taping process, which is a big help for those doing this for the first time. Don't use scotch tape--EVER. Remove old tape if it won't destroy the document finish. It usually falls right off. Mylar top-loader envelopes are fine for storing smaller documents. They can be purchased at one of the discount chains on sale (very inexpensive, about $4 for 50). Archival companies charge a lot more. But many documents need bigger storage. You may also purchase a pack of large size Mylar sheets and a heavier Mylar roll in a very large size. To use these, you need double-sided tape. Make sure you purchase Ph neutral tape. (Again, just do a web search for "Mylar envelopes" or "Mylar sheets".) Cut two pieces of Mylar about one inch larger than the document you have. Lay the now repaired and flat document in the center of one Mylar piece. Unroll a length of double-sided tape and carefully place it from one corner of the document to another corner, leaving at least 1/4 inch of air space from the document to the tape. Repeat on each side, leaving an "air hole" of 1/8 inch or slightly larger at each corner. There will be a paper lining on the top side of the tape. Leave it in place for now. Lay another piece of Mylar on top. Set a gentle weight on top of the stack, so that your sheets don't move as you work. With your tweezers, work one edge of paper lining off of one length of tape. Strip it off, and then press the two Mylar pieces together on that side. Repeat, one side at a time. It can be tricky to do this without making a ripple, but the tape stays removable for a long time. An old squeegee roller can be used to set the tape after it is checked. Trim outside edges, if needed. Store flat in an archival box or artist's portfolio for the best preservation. The first document is nerve-wracking to do, but it really is easy. (continued in Part 3) -- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 7.0.225 / Virus Database: 262.2.1 - Release Date: 3/5/04

Shirley, a subscriber to our GERMANNA_COLONIES Mailing List, forwarded some information to me from the JONES Mailing List. I've extracted the pertinent information about preserving old documents and am posting here. Shirley's note prompted me to search for other advice on preservation of old documents and photographs on the web. I found many articles and, rather than try to consolidate them, I've just extracted information from each article and typed it in its own section of this email. ---------------------------------------------------------- WARNING! Archivists have discovered the hard way that using ordinary lamination plastic for old documents, newspapers, etc., does not preserve them. The best way to preserve them it to store them in a dark place after placing in acid-free Mylar film (not laminated). Ordinary lamination material still permits light rays to pass through it and cause a chemical reaction to the acid that most modern paper contains, and that all old documents contain. This causes deterioration of the paper and fading of the paper and print. The heat and pressure of most lamination processes also damages documents. Of course, keeping original documents is important, but one should always copy (scan) newspapers and other documents and then print them on acid free paper, which can be found at just about all stores selling printer paper and/or computer supplies. Too, one should save the graphics files from scanned documents and put the files on CDs for permanent safekeeping. Life expectancy for data on CDs is 80-100 years for premium quality CDs. --------------------------------------------------------- EXCERPTS FROM VARIOUS WEB SITES: The key to preserving your paper documents is to keep them in an acid-free, humidity-controlled environment. Your paper documents need protection from a variety of elements which contribute to their deterioration -- namely: light; heat; humidity; acids in papers, plastics, and adhesives; pollutants; and pests. You can store and preserve your paper documents in a few different ways. You can organize and file your documents in acid-free folders, and keep them in an acid-free box. Or you could place your documents in archival-safe, acid-free plastic sleeves and keep them in an album or binder. Another popular alternative is to encapsulate a document between two sheets of polyester (Mylar) film. Regardless of how you choose to store your documents, NEVER STORE THEM IN AN ATTIC OR BASEMENT. Extreme temperature and humidity changes cause rapid deterioration. Store your items in a room that is comfortable to you, with stable temperature and humidity. Plastic enclosures are safe for documents ONLY if they are made of polyester, polypropylene, or polyethylene. Other plastics are not chemically stable and will release damaging acids over time. Especially dangerous is PVC (polyvinyl chloride) plastic commonly found in "store-bought" binders; it emits hydrochloric acid over time. There is no problem with putting more than one document in the same plastic sleeve, but documents should be interleaved with acid-free paper to prevent acid migration from one document to another. Acid-free paper that is buffered will also counteract the formation of more acids in the future. Lamination of a document is NOT considered a safe conservation technique because the process may potentially damage a document due to high heat and pressure during application. Moreover, the laminating materials themselves may be chemically unstable and contribute even more to the deterioration of the document. Lamination also violates a cardinal rule of conservation, and that is to only apply treatments that do not alter the item and which can be reversed. Lamination cannot be reversed. Since newspapers are made of highly acidic paper and deteriorate so quickly, you should always photocopy the information you want from them onto acid-free paper. You can then store the original paper in an acid-free box, or mount clippings in an archival scrapbook. Clippings could also be stored in acid-free file folders, interleaved with acid-free paper. If you want to frame the clipping, you should frame the acid-free copy rather than the original clipping. The inks used in photocopiers and printers are moderately durable. Most printers have no alternative ink available that will not fade with time. Epson does produce DuraBrite ink for some of its printers, which is water-, smudge-, and light-resistant. It is a good rule of thumb to photocopy any document you wish to preserve onto acid-free paper. If you then keep the original and copy away from light, heat, humidity, etc., the document should last for several generations. Incidentally, there are archival inks for use on paper when one makes entries by hand: Pigma ink comes in a pen (do a web search for "Pigma ink" or "Sakura", which is the company making this ink), and Actinic ink comes bottled for use with a quill pen or in an ink pad (do a web search for "Actinic ink"). Often when paper objects (such as wedding certificates) have been stored rolled for many years, they become quite brittle. In order to safely unroll your certificate, moisture needs to be restored to the document (known as humidification). Placing your document in a humid environment for several hours should make it more flexible, allowing you to carefully unroll and flatten it. Watch out for ink on the document that might bleed (don't humidify it if the ink will run). You may have to experiment with the level of humidity and the amount of time you leave the document exposed; monitor to make sure it does not get saturated. Attempt to carefully unroll the document while it is still humid; do not proceed if it resists or begins to crack or tear. You could then flatten it by placing the document between two pieces of blotting paper, and then place a heavy object on top for a few days. The same rules which apply for the safe storage of paper documents generally apply to photos. Again, there are a number of options for preserving your photos. If you prefer an album, archival albums have acid-free components such as scrapbook style pages, picture-pocket pages made of one of the safe plastics, etc. Store-bought albums with "magnetic" pages are typically highly acidic and dangerous to photos. Besides albums, there are acid-free boxes made to accommodate between 500 and 1000 prints. These boxes come with acid-free envelopes and sleeves for negatives. Finally, photographs can be encapsulated in polyester (acid-free, such as Mylar) film just like paper documents. There are a variety of storage options available for storing negatives. The best choice depends on the number of negatives and one's preference. Negatives can be stored in acid-free envelopes -- paper or plastic -- and placed in an acid-free box made for negatives and prints. There are also clear acid-free plastic sheets which hold various size negatives and can then be put in a binder. The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) recommends non-buffered storage for color prints and negatives, and buffered storage materials for black and white prints and negatives. Nitrate film should be stored in buffered materials. When photos have been glued to photo album paper, the safest and recommended way to remove them from the paper is to carefully try to lift the photos off of the album page with a tool called a microspatula or a small spatula. Slip the microspatula under the edge of the photo, and carefully move it back and forth. The ease with which the photos come up may vary depending on the humidity level. Dry conditions may make prints and backing brittle, easier to lift. Or humid conditions may soften the adhesive and ease removal. Experiment with it, but DO NOT force the photos so that they tear. If you cannot lift them, cut away the black paper around the photo. If photos are on both sides of the page and you cannot cut around, interleave the pages of the album with acid-free paper and store the album in an acid-free box. (continued in Part 2) -- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 7.0.225 / Virus Database: 262.2.1 - Release Date: 3/5/04

Thank you, George for the computer security lesson. I will put the lesson to good use and better secure my computer & data. Many Thanks, Joyce