Questions
Why do we have a Conservation Laboratory at the Library of Congress?
Why do we care about future generations of scholars?
What role does conservation play at the Library of Congress?
Where does the Conservation Division fit into the Library of Congress?
How big is the Conservation Division?
What sort of work load do Conservation Division staff members face during an average year?
What sort of training would I need to work at the Library of Congress Conservation Laboratory?
What sorts of items do Conservation Directorate staff members work upon?
With collections of this size, how does the Conservation Division decide what work to do next?
Does the Library of Congress provide training in conservation?
Where else can I get training in Conservation?
Answers
Why do we have a Conservation Laboratory at the Library of Congress?
As with all organic materials, library collections decay over time, becoming unusable by researchers. Conservation staff members work to extend the useful life expectancy of fragile special collections items, just as doctors do for people. Conservation ensures that the Library’s priceless collections of world knowledge and creativity safely may be used by researchers, as well as special projects including digital scanning, publishing, and exhibitions.
Why do we care about future generations of scholars?
Conservation work ensures that the Library’s significant special collections materials remain accessible to later generations of scholars. Future scholars will bring new techniques, tools, knowledge, and skills to their work, ensuring future revolutions in information, creativity, and cultural sharing.
What role does conservation play at the Library of Congress?
Conservation allows the Library to meet our core objective of providing access to our priceless collections of knowledge and creativity over time. The Library’s Mission Statement identifies conservation as a core activity by stating, "The Library's mission is to make its resources available and useful to the Congress and the American people and to sustain and preserve a universal collection of knowledge and creativity for future generations."
The Library’s Vision Statement reinforces the role of conservation by saying, "We will foster a free and informed society by building, preserving and providing resources for human creativity, wisdom and achievement. We continually strive to place these resources at the fingertips of the American people, their elected representatives and the world for their mutual prosperity, enlightenment and inspiration."
Where does the Conservation Division fit into the Library of Congress?
The Conservation Division is one of five parts of the Preservation Directorate within the Office of Library Services. Other sections of the Preservation Directorate include:
- Binding and Collections Care, which cares for general collections;
- Preservation Reformatting, which handles preservation microfilming and digitization;
- Preservation Research and Testing, which conducts basic research on processes, techniques, and procedures to answer questions on treatments;
- Mass Deacidification, which neutralizes acid in brittle collections items.
How big is the Conservation Division?
The Conservation Division consists of roughly 45 staff members, as well as several conservation contractors and interns. These staff members work in two conservation laboratories plus in an annex space, all within the Library’s James Madison Building.
What sort of work load do Conservation Division staff members face during an average year?
During 2009, the Conservation Division (CD) staff members assessed or surveyed over 503,937 items, housed over 365,076 items, treated over 28,965 items, and labeled 24,662 items. Treatment work involved 597 volumes, 27,580 unbound paper items, 782 photographs, and six other formats. Also during 2009, staff received 324 special collections housing supply requests, placed 52 supply orders, and distributed supplies to staff. During 2009, CD staff prepared materials for 13 major digitization projects and 61 exhibits of which 10 were in-house. Staff also provided courier services to pick up and deliver items to remote exhibit venues.
During 2009, CD staff responded to 43 emergency incidents in 52 locations of which 10 involved damage to collections requiring mitigation. CD staff monitored and analyzed environments in 130 Library exhibit and storage spaces. CD staff taught internationally, published widely, served on standards committees, hosted three interns, and offered 86 tours to over 500 visitors.
What sort of training would I need to work at the Library of Congress Conservation Laboratory?
The Conservation Division accepts applications each January from Conservation Program graduate students interested in year-long internships. Available jobs at the Conservation Division are listed on the Library’s employment page with requirements for the necessary knowledge, skills, and abilities spelled out in the job description.
What sorts of items do Conservation Directorate staff members work upon?
In general, the Conservation Division staff members care directly for the 109 million special collections items of the Library including more than 62 million manuscripts; the largest rare book collection in North America; and the world's largest collection of legal materials, films, maps, sheet music and sound recordings. Other collections items include charts, drawings, graphic prints, incunabula, newspapers, photographs, posters, serials, scrolls, and other special collections items.
Detailed listings of these 109 million special collections (also known as non-classified collections) items include:
- 3,005,028 audio materials, such as discs, tapes, talking books, and other recorded formats
- 62,778,118 total manuscripts
- 5,357,385 maps
- 16,086,572 microforms
- 5,674,956 pieces of sheet music
- 14,388,175 visual materials, including
- 1,207,776 moving images
- 12,536,764 photographs
- 98,288 posters
- 545,347 prints and drawings
With collections of this size, how does the Conservation Division decide what work to do next?
Each curatorial division is allocated a certain number of hours of conservation support to meet their assessment, housing, stabilization, treatment, and move preparation needs. Each Spring, the Conservation Division issues a call to the Library’s special collections curators asking them to identify what work they need to have assessed, treated, or custom housed.
When the curatorial requests for service come in, Conservation staff members prioritize treatments based upon:
- the value of the collections, which is established by the curators;
- the level of risk to the collections, which is based upon a conservation assessment; and
- the use of the collections, which is based upon the needs for the items to be stabilized so they may be used for digital projects, exhibitions, loans, moves to offsite storage, publication projects, and in research rooms.
Some staff time is set aside for emergency response work, special requests from the Librarian’s Office, research, and special projects.
Why do Library collections deteriorate?
LC collections become worn and damaged over time as a result of heavy use by generations of researchers. Damage may also be due to:
- Troublesome materials or construction techniques of historical items (i.e., iron gall ink, wood pulp paper),
- Shipping or handling accidents,
- Poor storage environments prior to the materials arrival at the Library, particularly exposure to high humidity and temperature, light, insects, vermin, or mold,
- Frequent use of the collections items including handling, reformatting, and exhibition, which often have occurred prior to arrival at the Library,
- an Emergency such as a flood, mold, or insect or vermin infestation.
Regardless of the circumstances, the LC Conservation Laboratory is there to rescue these materials, serving as a combination hospital, preventive health care program, emergency room, and intensive care program for the Library’s 109 million special collections items.
Does the Library of Congress provide training in conservation?
Yes, the Library of Congress Conservation staff members teach conservation overview courses for:
- The Federal Library and Information Center Committee, Education and Training, and
- Catholic University of America School of Library and Information Science
Conservation Division staff also give regular lectures at:
- Library of Congress Topics in Preservation Series as well as at a wide variety of other venues.
Interested graduate students may apply for internships and fellowships at the Conservation Division
Where else can I get training in Conservation?
See the American Institute for Conservation’s excellent Become a Conservator: A Guide to Conservation Education and Training
