This paper examines the archival potential of blogs, a popular form of electronic record in which personal accounts and commentaries are entered regularly in an on-line journal. A historical survey of the diary—the blog's paper-based antecedent—suggests how the two records are alike and where they diverge, taking into account their evidential values, their seemingly contradictory public and private qualities, and their very diverse physical natures. The paper discusses the role that traditional archives should play in preserving blogs, while considering the implications that their loss would have for our cultural memory, and offering some suggestions for ensuring their preservation.

Historians are expert researchers who use a variety of methods to locate primary research material in archives, including consulting the archivist. This article suggests that historical researchers deliberately establish relationships with archivists to tap into their in-depth knowledge about archival resources. The relationship with the archivist is the social capital of historical researchers because through it they are able to gain access to this specialized knowledge. This article examines the strategies undertaken by historical researchers to establish these relationships and their evaluation of the relationships in terms of finding resources. It also examines the difference in access to the archivist between established historical researchers and PhD students and speculates on how the availability of archival resources and finding aids on the World Wide Web might affect the relationships between researchers and archivists.

The Catholic University of America (CUA) may seem like an unlikely home for important collections of archival records documenting the labor movement in the United States. By tapping into the sympathies of many priests for the labor movement as well as the devout Catholicism of many union organizers, however, the CUA managed to compile an impressive body of labor records at a time when very few archives were collecting such records. This article explores how different priests and bishops developed and maintained this collection over the years. The history of the collecting of labor records at CUA offers insight into the various internal and external factors that influence collection development practices and acquisition policies over time.

William J. Barrow was a unique and significant individual in the history of archives preservation, the development of permanent/durable book paper, and the application of investigative techniques in these fields. The author, who worked with Barrow in his restoration shop and research laboratory during the 1950s when much of his major work was in progress, offers in this article an appreciation of his contributions. The article corrects some recent misapprehensions concerning Barrow and provides an account of his effective personal and problem-solving attributes.