Preservation Assessment and Storage Furniture to Preserve Archival Collections

FAIN: PG-51681-12

Mennonite Church USA (Newton, KS 67114-1703)
Colleen McFarland Rademaker (Project Director: May 2011 to October 2013)

The hiring of a consultant to conduct a preservation assessment and the purchase of storage furniture to better preserve 2,000 linear feet of the administrative records documenting the Mennonite Church's missionary activities, health services, emergency relief, and education and job training. The collections also include over 6,000 feet of manuscripts and the personal papers of missionaries, authors, peace activists, clergy, artists, and service workers.

This proposal seeks funding to support a preservation needs assessment survey of the collections at the Mennonite Church USA (MCUSA) Archives - Goshen in Goshen, Indiana and the purchase of flat file storage. The MCUSA Archives - Goshen serves as the official repository for the Mennonite Church and as a manuscript library collecting on the history of American Anabaptism. The archives will contract with a consultant from the Indiana Historical Society to conduct a general preservation needs assessment. The assessment will evaluate the general storage conditions of the collections, including environment, security, fire protection, and collection storage and handling. The assessment will result in a written report providing immediate, medium, and long-term preservation priorities to ensure the safety and longevity of our holdings. The grant will also allow the archives to purchase flat file storage for oversize materials now stored in conditions that threaten their physical integrity.