[Mi-local-history] Locked Local History Room

Mon Aug 19 10:25:17 EDT 2024

Hi Rae,

Our archives room is located in the library basement. It's open at the 
same time the library is. We leave the room unlocked because we don't 
get a whole lot of people going down there. When we do, I, or another 
colleague, will be downstairs with them in case they has any questions, 
and we usually let them in with an appointment. We also have sign by the 
door that spells out the archives's guidelines like no food, drink, or 
gum; no browsing; and how the staff member will provide the research 
materials.

I hope this helps.

Sincerely,
Emily Malek

Emily Malek
Archivist
Romeo Community Archives
Romeo District Library - Kezar Branch
(586) 690-4890
rca at romeodistrictlibrary.org

On 2024-08-13 12:12, mi-local-history-request at mcls.org wrote:
> Send Mi-local-history mailing list submissions to
> 	mi-local-history at mcls.org
> 
> To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit
> 	https://mail3.mcls.org/mailman/listinfo/mi-local-history
> or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to
> 	mi-local-history-request at mcls.org
> 
> You can reach the person managing the list at
> 	mi-local-history-owner at mcls.org
> 
> When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific
> than "Re: Contents of Mi-local-history digest..."
> 
> 
> Today's Topics:
> 
>    1. Re: Locked Local History Room (Ryan Gage)
> 
> 
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> 
> Message: 1
> Date: Tue, 13 Aug 2024 16:12:34 +0000
> From: Ryan Gage <RyanG at kpl.gov>
> To: Rae Manela <rmanela at novilibrary.org>, "mi-local-history at mcls.org"
> 	<mi-local-history at mcls.org>
> Subject: Re: [Mi-local-history] Locked Local History Room
> Message-ID:
> 	<MN2PR04MB6688EC524DFE54670CCC58A5BE862 at MN2PR04MB6688.namprd04.prod.outlook.com>
> 
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
> 
> Rae,
> Our Local History Room is currently very 'open floor', meaning we don't 
> have very specific borders or walls to delineate it from the rest of 
> the second floor, but we do have the advantage of having a large desk 
> to regularly staff, which allows us to monitor patron activity. The 
> collection is open all day long. Most patrons who congregate at tables 
> are not there to use our collection, but rather to charge their phone, 
> watch videos or read the newspapers. Having the desk regularly staff 
> allows us to approach patrons if they appear 'lost' or who may 
> inadvertently take our materials away from the area (which they are not 
> allowed to do). Our situation would not work without that staff 
> presence. Years ago, the local history room was much more walled off, a 
> clearly delineated space to be used by researchers. So, we gained space 
> for the collection, but lost privacy and quiet in the change.
> 
> If you don't have sightlines or the capacity to staff the area with 
> regularity, and the room is open to the public, challenges like 
> sleeping, eating, and theft are an inevitable outcome. Even with our 
> regular staffing approach, we on occasion have someone walk off with a 
> book (luckily, not as regular as with our DVD/Book collection). Certain 
> materials like photographs are in locked cabinets, and most of our very 
> fragile/significant resources are in closed storage.
> 
> Ryan Gage | Local History Specialist
> Pronouns: He/Him/His
> Kalamazoo Public Library | CEN
> 315 S. Rose St. | Kalamazoo, MI 49007
> (269) 553-7844
> [Facebook]<https://www.facebook.com/KalamazooPublicLibrary/> 
> [Instagram] <https://www.instagram.com/kzoolibrary/?hl=en>  [Twitter] 
> <https://twitter.com/KzooLibrary?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor> 
>  [KPL Videos] <https://www.kpl.gov/videos/>
> [Kalamazoo Public Library: Celebrating 150 Years of Access and 
> Innovation]<https://www.kpl.gov/>
> [Facebook]<https://www.facebook.com/KalamazooPublicLibrary/> 
> [Instagram] <https://www.instagram.com/kzoolibrary/?hl=en>  [Twitter] 
> <https://twitter.com/KzooLibrary?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor> 
>  [KPL Videos] <https://www.kpl.gov/videos/>
> 
> 
> From: Mi-local-history <mi-local-history-bounces at mcls.org> On Behalf Of 
> Rae Manela via Mi-local-history
> Sent: Tuesday, August 13, 2024 10:42 AM
> To: mi-local-history at mcls.org
> Subject: [Mi-local-history] Locked Local History Room
> 
> Hello,
> 
> I'm seeking perspectives on having a locked local history room.
> 
> My library has always had the local history room locked, and then open 
> for office hours and/or appointments. However recently we had a patron 
> ask why it can't be left unlocked and I was asked to investigate what 
> other libraries do.
> 
> I will note, the local history room is not in the sightline of a 
> reference desk. We also have lots of original documents. We also have a 
> very demanding patron population who have been caught in the room when 
> the door was accidentally unlocked and despite the door being closed 
> and the lights off, people have gone in with food and drinks with no 
> permission.
> 
> Please let me know what your library's policy is, how many office hours 
> you might have for the room and what access to the room looks like at 
> your library.
> 
> Thank you,
> 
> [https://ci3.googleusercontent.com/mail-sig/AIorK4wp2GdChJTU1A-4bOXi9N-5Y3D0tMhcLZ0h7TdyVFocOCBgQOffhU0IrwnWaKivnI-SgK8mejWTL-Qd]
> -------------- next part --------------
> An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
> URL: 
> <http://mail3.mcls.org/pipermail/mi-local-history/attachments/20240813/3b7dc3b8/attachment.html>
> -------------- next part --------------
> A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
> Name: image001.png
> Type: image/png
> Size: 3228 bytes
> Desc: image001.png
> URL: 
> <http://mail3.mcls.org/pipermail/mi-local-history/attachments/20240813/3b7dc3b8/attachment.png>
> -------------- next part --------------
> A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
> Name: image002.png
> Type: image/png
> Size: 3702 bytes
> Desc: image002.png
> URL: 
> <http://mail3.mcls.org/pipermail/mi-local-history/attachments/20240813/3b7dc3b8/attachment-0001.png>
> -------------- next part --------------
> A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
> Name: image003.png
> Type: image/png
> Size: 3303 bytes
> Desc: image003.png
> URL: 
> <http://mail3.mcls.org/pipermail/mi-local-history/attachments/20240813/3b7dc3b8/attachment-0002.png>
> -------------- next part --------------
> A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
> Name: image004.png
> Type: image/png
> Size: 3000 bytes
> Desc: image004.png
> URL: 
> <http://mail3.mcls.org/pipermail/mi-local-history/attachments/20240813/3b7dc3b8/attachment-0003.png>
> -------------- next part --------------
> A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
> Name: image005.png
> Type: image/png
> Size: 5692 bytes
> Desc: image005.png
> URL: 
> <http://mail3.mcls.org/pipermail/mi-local-history/attachments/20240813/3b7dc3b8/attachment-0004.png>
> -------------- next part --------------
> A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
> Name: image006.jpg
> Type: image/jpeg
> Size: 11576 bytes
> Desc: image006.jpg
> URL: 
> <http://mail3.mcls.org/pipermail/mi-local-history/attachments/20240813/3b7dc3b8/attachment.jpg>
> -------------- next part --------------
> A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
> Name: image007.jpg
> Type: image/jpeg
> Size: 11646 bytes
> Desc: image007.jpg
> URL: 
> <http://mail3.mcls.org/pipermail/mi-local-history/attachments/20240813/3b7dc3b8/attachment-0001.jpg>
> -------------- next part --------------
> A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
> Name: image008.jpg
> Type: image/jpeg
> Size: 11634 bytes
> Desc: image008.jpg
> URL: 
> <http://mail3.mcls.org/pipermail/mi-local-history/attachments/20240813/3b7dc3b8/attachment-0002.jpg>
> -------------- next part --------------
> A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
> Name: image009.jpg
> Type: image/jpeg
> Size: 11502 bytes
> Desc: image009.jpg
> URL: 
> <http://mail3.mcls.org/pipermail/mi-local-history/attachments/20240813/3b7dc3b8/attachment-0003.jpg>
> 
> ------------------------------
> 
> Subject: Digest Footer
> 
> _______________________________________________
> Mi-local-history mailing list
> Mi-local-history at mcls.org
> https://mail3.mcls.org/mailman/listinfo/mi-local-history
> 
> 
> ------------------------------
> 
> End of Mi-local-history Digest, Vol 9, Issue 2
> **********************************************