Thanks Cousin Agnes. Well said. My father had a box of old photographs stored in his garage. In this box, there were photographs and documents well over one hundred years old. There was a flood and fortunately, the photos weren't damaged. He continued to store the box in the garage until I rescued it and took it to my home. I have spent the past two years scanning and retouching and identifying the old photos. Also, I've been preserving old newspaper and yellowing photos with an archival solution to neutralize the acids in the paper. Since then, I have been acquiring other old photos and letters from many family members. My work continues... This is truly a labor of love. Kurt > Subject: [Catawba-West] record preservation > Date: Sun, 16 Jul 2000 12:19:03 -0600 > From: "Agnes E. Cloninger" <[email protected]> > To: [email protected] > > Malinda and Emma and all of you, > > Ladies, ladies please be a bit more circumspect - nothing we get alarmed > about now will help preserve records ruined by the uninformed. They will > always be with us. Some of the things that are destroyed by understaffed > libraries, however well educated that staff may be, would make your blood > run cold. Our only salvation through the years has been the volunteers who > rush to such scenes of disaster and rake through the ruins to preserve > anything they can fine. > > We - you and I and anyone else who reads these messages are the ones > responsible for salvaging and preserving records. We do not pay civil > employees at the librarian level enough money to allow them to do such > archival chores. Most archivists (small places may not even hire one) have > a full time job just keeping up with the day to day obligations. Preserving > records that are waterlogged and in danger of contaminating everything else > in sight is not possible, in most areas. > > Incensed as we may be at the staggering amount of lost records, we > absolutely must place the blame where it belongs: On a general public who > do not give a hoot, and who would refuse to raise their own taxes enough to > hire more staff for the area archives, so as to assure there are enough > bodies to cope with disaster. > > Please - enough finger pointing, support your local genealogical society, > become active in that society, pay your dues, offer your help, give them > some cash, whatever it takes - the internet is great for sharing > information but no matter how hard we try there is no way to preserve > records without being where they are and helping HANDS ON. > > End of lecture > > Agnes E. Cloninger > > ______________________________ > >