Frequently Asked Questions

  • An archive collects and preserves historic materials for people to use. 

    Archivists rarely think about an individual item, like a letter. Instead, archivists consider the historic materials as belonging to collections. The materials in a collection are connected and interact to tell a story. 

    All those letters, documents, and photographs created by the Acme Corporation? They make up a collection. The letter from Wile E. Coyote demanding a refund is an individual item in the Acme Corporation collection. Although there may be a copy of that letter somewhere, the collection itself is absolutely unique. One story we can see in the Acme Corporation collection is the variety of Acme products Wile E. Coyote purchased in his pursuit of Road Runner.

    Historically, only “qualified” researchers were allowed to use archives. In recent decades, many archives have abandoned rules that prevented people from having access to history. The Columbus Indiana Architectural Archives is open to all.

    For more information about archives and how to use them, view Using Archives: A Guide to Effective Research by the Society of American Archivists

What do I need to know before visiting CIAA?

  • Contact us. Many archives publish finding aids, collection guides, and collection descriptions on their website for the public to search. Other archives rely on direct communication with an archivist via mail, email, or telephone. Currently, the Columbus Indiana Architectural Archives has some limited descriptions on our website, so people wanting to learn more about CIAA’s holdings are encouraged to contact the archives directly by completing a contact form.

  • Archival materials require special handling as we prepare them for your visit. Because our office and workspace doubles as the reading room for researchers, we need to make sure there is enough room for you to use those materials.

  • Popular culture has reinforced the idea that you must wear gloves when using archival materials, but that’s almost never the case. When handling paper, wearing gloves increases the risk of damaging paper because you do not have good tactile sense. We ask that you have clean, lotion-free hands. If you’re handling photographs that have not yet been sleeved in protective mylar, we will provide you with nitrile gloves.

  • No, materials may not be checked out. Because archival collections are not duplicated anywhere else, a key responsibility of any archive is to maintain the integrity of its collection materials so that future generations may use them.

  • No, you may not make photocopies, but you may take pictures of materials. We welcome photography for non-commercial, personal, or research use, but we do not allow flash photography. Tripods and copy stands are not permitted.

  • Yes, you may use a laptop or tablet during your research visit, but scanners are not permitted. You may take notes on paper with a pencil. To protect the collection, pens are not permitted. If needed, we will provide you with pencil and paper.

  • Yes, we do digitize some materials on request. We can digitize photographs and most drawings, although some drawings are too large or too fragile to digitize. Typically, we do not digitize documents.

  • Food and beverages are not permitted in the archives where collection materials are used. Sealed food or beverage in a bag, backpack, or purse is permitted in designated areas.

What type of appointment should I make to visit CIAA?

  • A research visit is for individual, self-guided use of collection materials. This may be a facilities manager looking for a building detail, an artist seeking inspiration, an author writing a book or article, or a designer studying precedent.

    A research visit may be as brief as a few minutes or as long as several weeks. There is no fee for research visits.

    Contact the archives prior to your visit. We strive to accommodate all researchers in a timely manner. Requests to see a few drawings can often be fulfilled within a few days if not on the same day. Requests to see large volumes of materials for in-depth research may not be fulfilled for up to six weeks.

  • An instructional session is for university or high school classes visiting the archives and looking at archival materials. In consultation with the instructor(s), the archivist designs and leads a session intended to briefly introduce students to the architectural archives and to present collection materials for their study. The materials are selected based on the learning goals of the instructor(s).

    Instructional sessions last between one and two hours and typically should not have more than 25 students. Several instructional sessions may be scheduled over the course of one or two days to accommodate large groups. There is no fee for instructional sessions.

    Contact the archives at least two months prior to your visit.

  • A collection tour is for any group that wishes to visit the archives and view a sampling of archival materials. The archivist consults with a member of the group to determine what topics and sorts of materials the group is interested in.

    The length of a collection tour is flexible but does not last longer than 90 minutes. Generally speaking, groups should not have more than 12 people, although accommodations may be made for larger groups. There is no fee for a collection tour.

    Contact the archives two months prior to your visit.

How may I use archival materials?

  • For presentations, publications, and the like, you should cite your sources. Citing sources adds credibility to your work, helps others locate the materials you’ve consulted, and recognizes the labor and resources of the archives you’ve used.

  • How you cite the materials depends on where you are using them.

    For presentations and news articles, we recommend as a minimum you identify the creator (who made the item) and the architectural archives. Including the collection name is optional. For instance, a photo by Balthazar Korab from the 301 Washington Street Collection, would be “Photo by Balthazar Korab, 301 Washington Street Collection, Columbus Indiana Architectural Archives,” or “Photo by Balthazar Korab, Columbus Indiana Architectural Archives.”

    For a publication such as book, academic article, or report, the citation is very detailed and allows other researchers to locate the particular item you have consulted. A standard citation for these uses is:

    [Title of item] by [creator], [date], [box number/folder number]
    [collection name (collection number)], Columbus Indiana Architectural Archives,
    Bartholomew County Public Library, Columbus, Indiana.

    The photo by Balthazar Korab in the 301 Washington Street collection would be cited this way:

    Office meeting area in 301 Washington Street by Balthazar Korab (proof),
    1970s, 2/2, 301 Washington Street Collection (C0001), Columbus Indiana Architectural
    Archives, BCPL Archives, Bartholomew County Public Library, Columbus, Indiana.

    If you need assistance, please contact the archives.

  •  Archives rarely hold the rights to the materials in their collections, and this is the case for the CIAA. Therefore, we cannot give you permission to publish. It is your responsibility to determine whether an item is under copyright and who holds the copyright. It is also your responsibility to obtain permission to publish. 

    We recommend that you consult the Society of American Archivists’ guide Copyright and Unpublished Material: An Introduction for Users of Archives and Manuscript Collections.