About Archival Description
See the "Glossary of Archival Terms" for definitions of any words used throughout this primer.
The archives of the Guelph Public Library (GPL) endeavours to make the records in its holdings available to the public. Arrangement and description of its records are the primary tool used to provide this access.
ARRANGEMENT
Arrangement is defined as the intellectual and physical operations involved in the analysis and organization of records. The Guelph Public Library arranges its records according to two basic archival principles:
Provenance This principle dictates that records be arranged according to the body (e.g. person, family, organization) that created, accumulated, or used the records. The principle of provenance requires that the records of a creator are not mixed with the records of another, even if thematically similar. Original Order Within each fonds or collection, the Archives retains, where possible, original filing order. Records are produced for specific reasons and their creators usually file them in a manner consistent with the record's operational purpose. Often, the context of a records creation and how it is filed is crucial to understanding its meaning. If a letter is removed from a file, for example, we may not know what caused it to be written, or what actions, if any, resulted from the letter's creation.
DESCRIPTION
Description is defined as the process of recording information about the nature and content of the records in archival custody. All descriptions in DAD are based on the Rules for Archival Description (RAD), a national data content standard that prescribes how archival records are to be described. For detailed information on RAD see the Canadian Council of Archives website.
Levels of Description RAD descriptions are based on the concept of multi-level arrangement. They proceed from a high level, aggregate level of description to more detailed, subordinate levels of description.
Fonds/Collection Level (Mandatory)      Sous-Fonds (Optional)      Series (Optional, can be subordinate to either sous-fonds or fonds)      Sub-Series (Optional) File/Item Lists (Optional, can be attached to any level of description)
Fonds level This level of description concerns itself with the entire body of records in a given fonds or collection. It provides aggregate information on the extent of the records, the date range covered, applicable restrictions, and gives a high level overview of the content of the records. It also informs the researcher about how the fonds is arranged (i.e. organized). To this end, it defines any lower levels of organization (either sous-fonds or series). Note that a fonds need not be further divided if arrangement and description at that level is sufficient to provide easy access to its records. Sous-fonds The sous-fonds level of arrangement is rarely used in archives but is employed in those instances where there is an important subordinate administrative unit within the structure of the larger records creator. A good example of this is a municipal government that will have major administrative divisions such as departments or commissions. Series A series is a group of records that are filed and maintained together because the documents relate to a particular function or subject, result from the same activity, have a particular form, or because of some other relationship arising out of the circumstances of their creation or use. Series are usually directly subordinate to the fonds (in those cases where sous-fonds have been defined, series will be subordinate to these however). A collection of private papers, for example, may be divided into Family correspondence, Financial records, and Travel photographs series. Sub-series Series can be further divided into sub-series if required. A sub-series is a group of related material within a series, usually identified by subject, type of material, function, or filing arrangement. In the example used above, for instance, the series of travel photographs may be further divided (e.g. Photographs of trips to Russia, Photographs of trips to Norway) File and Item Lists Although RAD can be applied to more detailed levels, the GPL has chosen to apply the descriptive standard only to the sub-series level. In those instances where more detailed lists of GPL archival records are available these have been linked to the relevant level of description. Again following the example cited above, individual photographs of a person’s Photographs of trips to Norway may be listed to the item level (e.g. Aunt Betty standing beside the Kremlin, Uncle Ernie in the Winter Palace). Note that in DAD, while these lists appear to form part of the description, they in fact reside outside of the database proper. Patrons must search these lists separately in the Advanced Search Options page of DAD.
If you have any further questions about how the GPL archives arranges and describes its records, please contact the Guelph Public Library archivist.
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