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Planning
your visit
You
can't just turn up at an archive and expect to immediately
start work on original documents - there are various
steps you will need to take beforehand. The first is
to plan your visit, and it is essential to phone or
email in advance to obtain information on the following
areas. In short, never assume anything - always check
first.
Registration
The overwhelming majority of archives require you to
register with them when you first arrive, and thus obtain
a readers ticket. The required identification will vary
from archive to archive, but for county record offices
you tend to need two forms of ID, one of which will
have your name and address (eg phone, gas or electricity
bill) and another will be a formal identification (eg
driving licence, credit / bankers card or passport).
You should always ask the archive whether student ID
is valid.
Many
archives are members of the County Archive Research
Network (CARN), whereby your CARN ticket is valid at
all participating archives irrespective of where you
first obtained it. Check whether your archive is a member
of this scheme.
Booking
In addition to registration, many archives also require
you to book a seat in advance, especially at county
record offices where space can be limited. This is especially
important if you are working with material that is viewed
on microfilm or microfiche, where popular records (such
as parish registers, census returns and the International
Genealogical Index or IGI) are in heavy demand with
genealogists.
Location
Find out where the archive is. This may sound obvious,
but if you are not familiar with an area you can waste
a lot of time wandering around. Many archives can provide
basic maps if you are driving, or details of the nearest
station or bus route. Those with web sites often include
links to maps and travel information available for you
to download.
Restricted
Material
Remember to check whether there are any special requirements
for collections, especially those that have been deposited
by private individuals. You may need to obtain permission
from the owners of the collection before you can view
or use the material, or provide a letter of introduction.
Usually the archive can provide details of what is required.
Out-housed
Material
Furthermore, material may be housed off-site. It may
take some time for this to be delivered to the main
archive - for example, there are many documents at The National Archives that are stored at a repository
at Hayes, and it takes three working days to produce
them at the main site at Kew.
Opening
Times
Archives rarely adopt a 9 till 5, 5 days a week pattern
of work. An increasing number now open on a Saturday,
but often at the expense of a day in the week. Late
opening hours are similarly compensated by an early
or half-day closure. It is therefore vitally important
that you check opening times, especially if you are
travelling from distance. Try to plan your research
trip accordingly.
Furthermore,
some archives will close for a period in each year for
stocktaking. There is no universally accepted standard
closure period, and may indeed change from year to year.
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