Templates

Simple box listing

A simple box listing is the first tool in the battle for organizing your own archive. This description gives you an overview for determining what you have and helps explain your stuff to others. You don’t necessarily need to go into a lot of detail. For example, maybe you have a file of mixed correspondence. You don’t need to describe every letter or scan every page. Normally an archivist would take a quick measurement for a box listing and write some basic information down, like a date range and kinds of media. So, for example, “Mixed correspondence, 2 cm of textual records, 5 col. photos (20 x 25 cm or smaller), 1987-1993” is actually a pretty full description for a typical file of archival stuff. Are there CDs in the box? How many? A simple box listing is an inventory of a physical property. We’ve got some other templates in the oven (check back soon) but this is a good place to start.

Here’s a Simple box listing template you can download to start documenting your own collections.