Product Details

Edited by Larry J. Hackman

Twenty-three well-versed archivists and allied professionals teach you how to advocate effectively for your archives in Many Happy Returns: Advocacy and the Development of Archives.

Editor Larry Hackman's opening essay is a tutorial on advocacy principles and application, including practical techniques and tactics. Hackman asserts that "advocacy is an investment that we make when we intentionally and strategically educate and engage individuals and organizations so that they in turn will support our archival work."

Thirteen case studies address a variety of advocacy experiences and methods. For example, the New York Philharmonic archivist has spent more than 25 years building a strong and highly visible archives by finding and using allies within the Philharmonic's own internal family. One vital strategy has been to link the archives to the interests and needs of the symphony's very prominent music directors.

Other examples include major breakthroughs, such as passage of a $7 million bond issue for the Butte archives in Montana, and creation of a significant preservation endowment for the Oberlin College Archives in Ohio, as well as more typical incremental advances made over longer periods by matching an archives advocacy methods to the culture, structures, and processes of the parent organization.

A highly instructive chapter describes seven categories of advocacy lessons learned from the case studies and suggests areas that archivists should give higher priority, particularly in finding and using external advocates. The book concludes with essays on advocacy and archival education, the use of new technologies to build support for archives, and advocacy at the federal level.

This book ably demonstrates that archivists can (and should!) invest time in advocacy efforts to produce "many happy returns" for themselves and their archives. And now, so can you!  

Product Details