Records Advisory: Salvaging and Caring For Your Family Treasures

Salvaging Your Family Treasures

General Resources

• Basic salvage guidelines from professional conservators
• Preservation: Emergency Response and Recovery

Salvaging Books and Paper Records

• How to save wet books
• How to save wet paper records
  • Uncoated paper
  • Coated paper
• Freezing and drying wet books and paper records
• Preparation for drying framed or matted paper items

Salvaging Photographs

• Emergency Salvage of Wet Photographs
• Water damaged photographs, digital prints and photo albums

Salvaging Audio/Visual Materials

• First aid for water damaged film, magnetic tape, and discs
  Flood damaged film, magnetic tape (audio and video cassettes, reel-to-reel tapes), and discs (LP’s, 45’s, optical discs, CDs, DVDs and Blu-rays)
• Disaster Recovery for Films in Flooded Areas
  Film (home movies) and videotapes.

Salvaging 3-D Objects

• Salvage Procedures for Wet Items
  Water damaged textiles, clothing, and costume accessories, and vellum, parchment and wooden items
• Salvage at a Glance: Object Collections
  Water damaged organic objects (ivory shell, skin, leather, wooden objects and basketry) and inorganic objects (ceramics, metal, stone, and glass)

Caring for Your Family Treasures

• Memory and History: What to save and how – Caring for Your Treasures
• Resources for those who care for family collections

For further information or assistance contact the State Archives at:

Telephone: (518) 474-6926
Email: arch_sos@nysed.gov.

See also:

• Disaster Assistance webpage
• NYSA Advisory: Working with Disaster Recovery Vendors