Faded portraits, fragile letters and crumbling certificates are often the only physical link to the people on your family tree. A few careful habits will help them survive for the next generation.
Choose the right place to store them
Light, heat, damp and big swings in temperature are the main enemies of old paper and photographs. Keep originals in a cool, dry, dark place inside the main part of your home. Avoid lofts, basements, garages and spots near radiators or outside walls.
Use suitable materials
- Store items in acid-free folders, envelopes and boxes designed for archival use.
- Choose photo sleeves made from inert, archive-safe plastics rather than ordinary plastic wallets.
- Avoid old "magnetic" albums with sticky pages, which can damage photographs over time.
Handle with care
- Wash and dry your hands before handling, and hold photographs by their edges.
- Remove rusty staples, paper clips and rubber bands, which stain and weaken paper.
- Never use sticky tape or glue to repair a document. If something is badly damaged, ask a professional conservator for advice.
- Unfold old letters gently and store them flat where possible.
Label everything
An unlabelled photo of unknown people loses much of its value. Write names, places and approximate dates on a separate sheet kept with the photo, or on the back using a soft pencil. Never use a ballpoint or felt-tip pen, which can press through or bleed. Ask older relatives to help identify faces while you can.
Tip: When you are not sure who is in a picture, record what you do know, such as "taken at Grandad's house, about 1965", and add a question mark. Partial information is still useful.
Digitise your collection
Scanning or photographing items means you can share and study them without handling the originals. Scan at a high resolution, save master copies in a lossless format, and name the files using the system in our post on organising your research.
Keep copies in more than one place
Store digital copies on at least two devices and one off-site location such as a cloud service. Consider giving copies to relatives too; spreading the collection around is one of the best ways to protect it.
