About UB Finding Aids

While the term "Finding Aid" may have multiple connotations in the library environment as a whole, within the realm of archival and manuscript collections it is used to describe an inventory of a collection. There are many interpretations of what should be included within a finding aid and in what order the information is presented. The Finding Aids for collections in the University Libraries have been standardized to include the following components:

• Title Page: title of finding aid, collection number, repository (the library holding the collection) and its address, publication date, etc.


• Collection Overview: title of collection, range of dates of collection, collection number, creator of collection, physical description of collection, repository (the library holding the collection) name, and an abstract.


• Information for Users: form of preferred citation, restrictions to physical access, and copyright concerns.


• Administrative Information: acquisition information, whether the collection is open to more receipts, speclal location information, processing information, etc.


• Biographical or Historical Note: sometimes lengthy background about the creator of the collection and its context. May include a chronology.
  
  
• Scope and Content Note: a prose description of the collection contents.


• Arrangement: collections are usually divided into sections called series. The arrangement note describes the series and how they are arranged (alphabetically, chronologically, etc.)


• Container List: the actual inventory of the collection. This varies depending on the type of collection and is created with the needs of the researcher in mind. It may be very broad or described at the item level. It should allow the user to specify boxes, folders, or items they need rather than needing to see the entire collection.


• Search Terms: these are terms from sets of controlled vocabulary that describe the subject content of the collection, additional contributors, and genres or formats in the collection.


• Associated Material: may include information about items removed from the collection, a bibliography, an index, other finding aids, and other related materials, such as in-house collections or subject-related collections at other institutions.