As adopted by the Hepburn Library of Madrid Board of Trustees, April, 2022.

The purpose of this policy is to establish a protocol for the protection and preservation of historical documents held by the library, either on site or in use at another location. In recognition of more than one hundred years of history, it is vital to preserve, conserve, and collate documents and artefacts essential for the historical accounting of the Library.

The Hepburn Library of Madrid History Group was created to make the history of the library available for public knowledge. The Library intends to recruit and train a new cadre of volunteers, through a specific outreach collaboration with local historical societies, as well as those interested in local history.

In conjunction with the recommendations of the Northeast Document Conservation Center (NEDCC), the Library will assess what documents are eligible for preservation, secure the physical documents in a safe location, i.e., out of direct sunlight and other known catalysts of degeneration, and complete a process of digitalization of the content.

A preservation plan will be developed implemented, with the goal of one hour/month/per employee being devoted to document preservation. The plan will include a preservation assessment and development of a Mission Statement. Trained volunteers will assist not only in document preservation and conservation, but also searching for information that may be of general interest by the local population. Digitalization will ensure that the information is accessible to anyone online.

The preservation plan is outlined as follows:

  • Develop Mission Statement;
  • Undertake a NEDCC environment assessment;
  • Develop and train a core group of volunteers;
  • Yearly review of preservation plan with Board of Trustees through an Executive Summary.

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PDF of Preservation and Conservation of Library Materials Policy

Policies