Sometimes it takes reading statements from others to be convinced, and for that please read "9 Positions on Strengthening Democracy," published by the Association of German Archivists (in English). It's short enough to scroll on your phone, and powerful enough to stay with you all weekend.
In a democracy, the records belong to the people. Retention, preservation and access to federal records ensures government transparency. Retention, preservation and access to federal records ensures the ability for citizens to hold the government accountable for its actions.
In this 2021 blog, Heritage Consultant Rachel Howse Binnington explains how to sort through family papers you may have found in a clear-out, how best to take care of them and where to find help.
Read it here: celebratingjewisharchives.org/blog/what-to...
#FamilyArchives #SpringCleaning #Archives
I'm not anti-AI. But there is a time and a place. Doing research is not the time or place.
Working with a professional genealogist? Ask them if they generated any part of their research or the report with AI.
Why try to take down a myth by creating new ones?
I could go on and on regarding the problems with this "article." Let's consider that a lot of people never set foot on Ellis Island. How did their names change? easterneuropeanmutt.com/2017/01/04/t...
The US consular officials were not at the port of embarkation in 1893 checking documents. I could go on and on. The majority of immigrants never interacted with a Board of Special Inquiry.
Passports were not required for travel in 1893, as the author states. Passports for immigrants were not required until 1917.
This article misses so many important facts, the first being that the ship manifests were written by ticket agents at the post of embarkation. No US official wrote a ship manifest.
I don't know the fate of this reporter at the Post, but this story will sit with me for a long while. Gift link: wapo.st/4azZseB
Getting to $421 million was an uphill climb, and while NARA needs much more than this, the rejection of the proposed 10% funding cut is a big deal. Watch for an updated fundNARA.com in the coming weeks, because we need to roll up our sleeves for FY 2027.
These instructions are another rejection of the White House effort to decrease funding for Electronic Records initiatives at NARA by 33%.
The bill includes instructions that up to $30 million of the $421 million be used “for expenses necessary to enhance the Federal Government’s ability to electronically preserve, manage, and store Government records.”
While the amount provided for NARA’s operating budget is a 6% cut from FY2025, Congress rejected the White House’s proposal to slash NARA’s funding.
File under boring but important: On February 3, Congress passed H.R. 7148, the consolidated appropriations bill that includes funding for the National Archives and Records Administration. The bill was signed into law, allocating $421 million for NARA’s fiscal year (FY) 2026 operating budget.
Pick up truck with a plow just now.
This is for FOIAs, not the Genealogy Program. There is no such evidence of this happening with visa files coming from USCIS GP. I've received quite a few visa files recently.
This is going to get lost and people need to know about it. Props to @alcalz.bsky.social for keeping his eyes on Nightingale and what USCIS is up to.
Doctor watching medical drama: "That detail is wrong."
Regular viewers: Interesting!
Cop watching crime drama: "That detail is wrong."
Regular viewers: Interesting!
Historian watching history drama: "That detail is wrong."
Regular viewers: It iS NoT A DoCuMeNtArY!
Propaganda created by who? Library of Congress has many examples from WWII era in its collection.
How is NARA managing with this financial rescission? How is it managing with a 14% cut in employees, while being responsible for more records than ever? Any reporters looking into this?
Now that the final numbers are out from FY 2025, it appears that NARA never received what Congress intended as its appropriation - it received nearly $25 million less.
www.usaspending.gov/agency/national-archives-and-records-administration?fy=2025
