What I did this week - 1/13, 1/18
On Monday, continuing from the organization that I did last week, I began to re-folder the documents. This is a long process, because it requires that I separate documents that are sometimes in the same folder or envelope, give them a title, and then label the new archival folder with the title and a date. As I was doing this, I found a number of things that we did not need to keep, things like blank sheets of Greenville College stationary, or blank blueprint paper, or envelopes with no markings on them (although I did keep most of what was in the envelopes). These have all been placed in a discard box, and I intend to go back through the discard box before disposing of it, to make sure that I have not overlooked anything important. After working on this for three days, I am almost done with the first box, the one that was mostly loose papers. I will also have to re-folder the box of pamphlets, but not the books or periodicals, as they are too thick.
You may be wondering why I would have to do this, and the answer is twofold. First, the folders that I am using are special archival folders, designed to protect the documents, and help preserve them longer. Second, when I have labeled all the folders, I will have made it easier to keep them organized, and therefore easier for researchers to find what they are looking for.
Some highlights of what I found this week include a tax form that told me what the "W" in CWP stands for: Wallace! I also found an old love letter from Hazel, CWP's student card from the University of Washington, dated 1916, and an invitation to Seattle Pacfic College's first college commencement in 1915. The SPC class of 1915 was comprised of three people, and two of them had put their senior cards in with the invitation, which was addressed to "Mr. and Mrs. Peterson and family." Since CWP and Hazel did not get married until 1922, I surmise that the Mr. and Mrs. Peterson are Nils and Karen Peterson, two of the founders of the institution. This is another example of why SPU ought to keep this collection.
While the 1915 commencement invitation was
an exciting find, I was most excited about this:
I am quite a baseball fan and the fact that CWP's company was the first to broadcast an Opening Day baseball game made me very excited. At the top of the document, you will notice some discoloration. This is called acid migration, and it happened because this piece of paper was next to another piece of paper that was very acidic for 20 or so years. The acid in the other piece of paper rubbed off on to this piece, and now it is discolored. This is another reason why the archival folders are so important; they protect the documents from this kind of thing.
CWP saved a report of the Opening Day broadcast, and I
found it also in our collection. Here is a picture from it: