The Nature of Archival

Information
The Nature of Archival Information

 Archives as evidence

It is a basic premise of archival practice that particular records,

whether written, recorded, filmed, or photographed, are created

and assembled in the natural course of human activity. As part of

these activities, documents are created, assembled, and

preserved. They are evidence of what has transpired. The

spontaneous nature of such evidence is both its defining

characteristic and the source of its continuing utility and vitality.

 Archives as information
While archives are evidence, they may also be used for other
purposes unrelated to the circumstances of their original
creation (for example, a government agency collects
documents about the trucking industry as part of its
regulatory activities). While such records are clearly evidence
of that government function, they may also contain a wealth
of information about trucking companies that is useful for
business history or other secondary purposes.