ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries 644 Selection off general collec­ ACRL tion m aterials for transfer to G uidelines special collections, 2 n d ed : A draft Attend the hearings in Los Angeles on February 5, 1994 A successful transfer program d e p e n d s upon cooperation and coordination at ev ery level of the library organization. Both will be assisted considerably by a written policy statement. In developing the policy, it is es­ sential to obtain the sanction of the library’s senior administration. The policy should be written by those w ho are administratively re­ sponsible for the transfer program, usually the head of special collections, the head of collec­ tion development, or the two in concert. The development o f selection criteria and transfer procedures d ep en d s u p o n w ide agreem ent among, and must involve all relevant com po­ nents of, the library: these will generally in­ clude special collections, reference, cataloging (including automated systems personnel), gifts, circulation, government documents, preserva­ tion and collection development. The transfer policy must: 1. promulgate publicly the library’s defini­ tion of, and policy toward, rare and special collections, strongly justifying the m easures being taken to protect rare materials, and de­ scribing how these measures will enhance the institution’s resources in carrying out its mis­ sion; 2. establish firm lines of authority for the conduct of an economical and expeditious pro­ gram; 3. list the criteria of rarity being used in se­ lecting transfer items, which may be influenced to some extent by the nature and strengths of the library’s general and special collections; 4. set forth clear procedures to be followed in the transfer process, including procedures for recom m ending transfer, altering bibliographic and circulation records, and inspection by preservation staff; and 5. incorporate procedures to insure that read­ ers will be able to locate items during the trans­ fer process. In many institutions it will be useful to so­ licit comments from faculty, students, an d /o r other well-informed researchers, consult with staff at other libraries, or bring in a consult­ ant to review or advise on statement prepara­ tion. Once completed, the policy should be ap­ proved by the library’s senior administration and incorporated into the library’s overall col­ lection development policy. Transfer procedures A transfer program has three phases: 1. identification of materials which fit the selection criteria; 2. physical relocation and processing; and 3. record changes. 1. Identification o f materials Ideally, a transfer program will systematically inventory large segments of the general collec­ tions, examining each item individually and reviewing the bibliographic records for each: catalog cards, computerized records, accession or shelf list, and so on. Few libraries, however, will find such a com­ prehensive review possible. They will opt in­ stead to review materials and records selec­ tively, perhaps as part of a program with another purpose. Regardless of how broadly based the transfer program is, the direct inspection of both individual transfer candidates and their corre­ sponding bibliographic records is usually es­ sential. A selective program based on knowl­ ed g e o f the history o f th e collection an d designed to review areas of known strength may meet a substantial part of the need. Prepared by the Rare Books and Manuscripts Section 645 A selective review may include any o f the following: a. reading the shelves (or examining the shelf list) in classifications know n-or thought-to-con tain candidates for transfer, such as early or local imprints; b. reviewing chronological files for early imprints o f particular interest and value; or c. producing from m achine-readable records review lists based on imprint date, place o f publication, lit­ erary genre o r subject, o r any combination of similar keys. R are m a te r ia l m a y b e identified during the routine handling and review o f m a­ terials for th e follow ing li­ brary functions: a. acquisitions; b. gifts and exchange; c. cataloging; d. pre­ servation; e. binding; f. photo­ duplication; g. microreproduc­ tion; h. circulation; i. inventorying and shelf-reading; j. interlibrary loan; k. preparation of exhibi­ tions; 1. collection surveys; m. retrospective conversion of records; and n. weeding. Any of these activities may incidentally locate m ultiple copies in the collection, the retention or disposal o f w hich will b e determ ined by local policy. 2. Conservation treatm ent C o n s e r v a tio n tr e a tm e n t should be considered carefully as a com ponent o f the trans­ fer p o licy . Such tre a tm e n t (e.g., label rem oval, repair, phase boxing, com plete res­ toration) for individual items is desirable, but it may create backlogs or funding require­ ments w hich com plicate the transfer program. The simplest physical treatm ent may prove most effective o r most imme­ d ia te ly co st effectiv e. T h e transfer program may provide inform ation th at will prove useful for more extensive res­ toration o f transferred items at a later date. 3. Record changes A m eans must be devised, as part of the trans­ fer program, to inform readers promptly w hen the location o f an item has b een changed. Cata­ log records should be updated with new loca­ tions. Records should also be reviewed and, if necessary, enhanced to provide adequate ac­ cess in accordance with standard institutional policies an d procedures. In som e instances D evelopm ent of th ese guidelines The first edition of the guidelines for transferring general collection ma­ terials to special collections was prepared by an RBMS ad hoc commit­ tee chaired by Samuel Streit and was published in C&RL News (Septem­ ber 1987). In January 1993 the RBMS Executive Committee began to consider a revision o f the guidelines as part o f its periodic review o f the section’ s standards documents. It was decided that the document would be given an initial review before a new ad hoc revision committee was appointed. This process resulted in several relatively minor changes to the text— most of which derive from the fact that automated catalogs are now the rule rather than the exception. The revisions were based on consultations with members of the original committee that drafted the guidelines and with members of the RBMS Executive Committee. In its present form, the second edition o f the transfer guidelines was approved by the Executive Committee at the 1993 Annual Conference. On Satur­ day, February 5, 1994, from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. there will be a hearing on the revised document. Comments may also be addressed to Richard W . O ram , Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center, the Uni­ versity o f Texas at Austin, P.O. Drawer 7219, Austin, TX 7 8 713 -7 2 1 9; e-mail r.oram@utxvm.cc.utexas.edu. M any libraries intentionally acquire rare books, documents, and manuscripts, but virtually all libraries acquire books and documents which, with time and changing circumstances, and regardless o f inten­ tion, become rare. Over time, they acquire a special cultural and histori­ cal value, and sometimes a significant financial value in the market­ place as well. These guidelines relate to librarians’ responsibility to identify rare and valuable materials in general and open stack collections and to arrange for their transfer to the greater security of special collections departments.* These guidelines reflect two pervasive and underlying conditions which influence both the formulation and the administration of transfer policy: the identification of the rare and special, and the complex inter­ action of library departments required to effect changes in the records by which readers are informed o f the location of materials. Transfer policies and procedures w ill vary from institution to institu­ tion, depending on staffing, physical setting, and use o f the collections; these guidelines are written to identify the general topics to be consid­ ered in an adequate transfer program. *W h ile some libraries have had a good experience with intermediate, re­ stricted access collections, others have not. The wisdom o f whether to form them seems to depend on circumstances peculiar to a particular libra ry and is not addressed in these guidelines. N ote, however, that their use requires policy decisions regarding w hat to transfer and how to d o so which are parallel to those considered here. mailto:r.oram@utxvm.cc.utexas.edu 646 complete recataloging may be desirable, but in most cases a change in location information will suffice for m a c h in e -re ad ab le catalo g records. Nonautomated libraries may choose to: a. annotate (or jacket) catalog cards; all cards might be treated or, less successfully, only some (e.g., main entry); b. charge transferred items via a circulation record; c. place a dummy in the old location to re­ fer to the new; or d. transfer all materials published prior to a stated date (e.g., 1751 or 1801) in some or all subject classifications without record changes bu t w ith general publicity. This systematic change has been received well in some librar­ ies. W hat to transfer The transfer decision should simultaneously evaluate the unique qualities of an item and apply institutional policy. Thus the candidate for transfer (e.g., an 18th-century book) may fall within the scope o f an existing special col­ lections or rare book collection development policy. Selection for transfer implies that all simi­ lar items in the collection (e.g., all books in original bindings printed before 1751) ought to be considered also. The constraints on policy are familiar: the institutional mission and the resources—per­ sonnel, space and equipment, technology, and budget—needed to conduct that mission. The interaction betw een mission and resources dic­ tates realism and, often, compromise. Defining what is rare or unique is not always obvious, and decisions will vary among institutions. Still, certain general criteria apply in evaluating an item for transfer: 1. age; 2. intrinsic characteristics and quali­ ties; 3. condition; 4. bibliographical, research, or market value. 1. Age The longer an item has survived, the more worthwhile saving it probably becomes; as an item ages it becomes one of a decreasing num­ ber of witnesses to its own time. Consequently, there is now universal agreement on the need to protect 15th-century printing, even if frag­ mentary or present in “le af’ books. There is growing agreement on the same grounds to protect all materials, regardless of form or con­ dition, printed before 1801. There is less general agreement on books of later date and on “regional incurables”—books published in a locality or region in the first years (or decades) after printing was established in them—in spite of a consensus that responsibility for them must som ehow be distributed among many institu­ tions. 2. Intrinsic characteristics Books may possess intellectual value, artifac tual value, or both. For those books of intellec­ tual but not artifactual value institutional cir­ cumstances may necessitate partial or complete substitution of the original by microfilm or ph o ­ tocopy. But items with artifactual value, e.g., finely printed or bound books, manuscripts, drawings, or other original artwork including tipped-in photographs, require special protec­ tion of the objects themselves. Such material will require transfer. It is generally recognized that miniature books (ten centimeters or smaller) are too vul­ nerable for open stacks and that many books with prints and original photographs— often produced in limited quantities—are vulnerable to mutilation and deserve protection. O ther categories on which there is wide, but not always general, agreement include: a. fine and signed bindings; b. early pub­ lishers’ bindings; c. extra-illustrated volumes; d. books with significant provenance; e. books w ith decorated en d p ap ers; f. fine printing; g. printing on vellum or highly unusual paper; h. volumes or portfolios containing unbound plates; i. books with valuable maps or plates; j. broadsides, posters, and printed ephemera; k. books by local authors of particular note; 1. material requiring security (e.g., books in unusual formats, erotica, or materials that are difficult to replace). 3. Condition While age itself dictates transfer for our oldest surviving books, condition may be more im­ portant in judging more recent material. All values of the book—scholarly, bibliographical, and market—may be greatly affected by con­ dition. Copies that are badly worn, much re­ paired, or rebound, should not automatically be considered for transfer, unless the age of the material preempts condition as a criterion. The durability of most library materials pro­ duced since the mid-19th century has declined drastically. It is now increasingly difficult to locate even representative examples of many 647 19th- and 20th-century printing and binding pro­ cesses in fine original condition. So many vol­ umes have required rebinding, for example, that the richness of the original decorative art applied to bindings and printed endpapers is increasingly difficult to find and study. There­ fore, less than fine copies must be scrutinized as possible transfer items. Dustjackets frequently contain important information (e.g., text, illus­ trative design, and price), and if they are still present on general collection copies they should generally be retained. 4. B ibliographical, research, o r m arket value The rarity and importance of individual books are not always self-evident. Some books, for exam ple, w ere p ro d u ce d in circum stances which virtually guarantee their rarity (e.g., Con­ federate imprints). Factors affecting importance and rarity can include the following: 1. desirability to collectors and the antiqu ian book trade; 2. intrinsic or extrinsic evidence of censorship or repression; 3. seminal nature or importance to a particular field of study or genre of literature; 4. restricted or limited pu b ­ lication; 5. the cost of acquisition. Older reference works and early periodi­ cals still needed for general use frequently be­ come quite valuable and may require careful consideration for transfer, especially if facsimile or other reprint editions are available to re­ place them on the open shelves. In recent years, attention has been given to the need to protect valuable government documents. Reports of scientific discoveries and exploratory expedi­ tions, documents with valuable maps or plates, ethnographic reports, and early documents of major historical significance are subject to theft, mutilation, or deterioration and may require transfer. Selected reading The development, definition, and updating of a transfer policy is a complex and ongoing pro­ cess. It requires the exercise of imagination and good judgment, and profits from wide and in­ formed reading. Although there is no literature dealing w ith transfer p er se, the following books, selected from the large literature about books and book collecting, may provide spe­ cial help to those charged with forming and reforming their library’s policies. Brook, G. L. Books a n d Book Collecting. London: Andre Deutsch. 1980. ar Carter, John. ABC fo r Book Collectors. Sixth ed. rev. by Nicolas Barker. London: Granada Books, 1980. _ _ _ _ _ Taste a n d Technique in Book Collect­ ing. London: Private Libraries Assoc., 1982. Cave, Roderick. Rare Book Librarianship. S econd rev. ed. N ew York: R.R. Bowker, 1983. Gaskell, Philip. A New Introduction to Bib­ liography. New York: Oxford University Press, 1972. Peters, Jean, ed. Book Collecting: A M odem Guide. New York: R.R. Bowker, 1977. _ _ _ _ _ Collectible Books: Some New Paths. New York: R.R. Bowker, 1979. Schreyer, Alice D. Rare Books, 1983–84. New York: R.R. Bowker, 1984. Streit, Samuel. “Transfer of Materials from General Stacks to Special Collections.” Collec­ tion M anagement 7 (Summer 1985): 33–46. Walsh, Jim, et al. Rare a n d Valuable Gov­ ­ern m en t D ocuments: A Resource Packet on Identification, Preservation, a n d Security Issues fo r Government Documents Collections. 1993. A packet of materials available from Deposi­ tory Libraries. ■ ( Conference circuit cont. from page 638) of Southern California) described the pro­ cess o f adding value to a commercial newswire service and the usage patterns o f the resulting full-text news. News from 211 topic areas is brought into the library system and reformed into seven databases along the lines of a print newspaper, e.g., general news, business, sports. Remote users account for one-half of all use; however, remote users read “recreational” da­ tabases such as sports and columns more than library readers. Another difference between li­ brary use and remote use occurs in the reading method; library use involves more searching, whereas remote users browse more. Similar in format to the ACRL conferences, the ASIS conference interspersed four plenary sessions throughout the conference program. Particularly interesting was Lee Olsen’s (IBM) presentation “Multimedia: Transforming the Way We Use Computers.” Olsen gave a so­ phisticated multimedia presentation using text and image files stored on his personal com­ puter. The liveliest part of the discussion that followed centered on the ability of multimedia to blur the distinction betw een archival images of actual events and subsequent recreations. ■