Volunteering for the government

I mentioned a few posts back that I was looking at a volunteer opportunity at the local National Archives. I was shown around the place last week by the volunteer coordinator there.

For people who think that archives look like scenes at the end of this movie, you'd be wrong, since that's a warehouse where stuff is kept. The Archives is where documents are kept (like the original Declaration of Independence in Washington, say). So if you instead think of scenes from this TV show where the intrepid investigators are poring over documents on shelves in a large high-ceilinged room full of floor-to-ceiling shelving that are filled with (a) boxes (b) more boxes (c) even more boxes (d) some moldy old books ... well, that's a somewhat more realistic picture. (Note to self: try to see if a camera can go in there.)

Volunteers at this site perform two different functions. The first is "front desk" duty, helping out newbies to find things. Did I mention this facility is open to the public? The second is what they call "project" work, which is doing basic preservation of documents.

What kind of documents, I hear you say?

This particular archive contains things like court records, immigration records, shipping and customs records, and so on. There's a large body of materials, much from the 19th century, that needs some basic preservation: documents need to be (sometimes carefully) unfolded, content briefly examined, and refiled into acid-free storage boxes. Extremely fragile (i.e. nearly crumbling) documents are placed in mylar envelopes. They have more complex work too, but figure this is a good speed for a newbie.

I figured this might be a nice way to see if I want to do some sort of conservation work (either art or history), and gives me a window into regional history, while letting me actually handle Old Things.

Since this is the government, I have to fill out paperwork. To wit: I need to permit the FBI to do a background check, and I need to get fingerprinted (a service ably performed by the local police). And I need to provide a resume with two references. And I'm not even getting paid. Humph.