Fisher Archives

Institutional archives hold information about a specific person, place, or event.  There are many reasons why one might want to use an archive.  

• To learn more about a person who attended Fisher or worked at Fisher
• To understand the background of something that happened at Fisher
• To get a sense of the evolution of Fisher over time
• To answer the why, where, what, and who questions around this institution

Archive collections are usually closed collections; however, archives around the world are beginning to digitize their collections, making them easier to access.  For the most part, you will need to travel to the archive that holds the information you wish to research.

What happens when you get to an archive for research?

• Ask the archivist for a specific artifact or box of artifacts.  
• You'll need to leave your personal possessions in a locker, with the exception of a notebook and pencils. (Sometimes you will be allowed to use your phone for photographs)
• While consulting the archival documents, you'll be asked to stay in a designated area, called a reading room.

A researcher is allowed to inspect one box at a time, which can be frustrating if you don't know exactly where to find your information.  It may take quite a long time to find exactly what you want.  But sometimes, you stumble across the unexpected!! 

One day, I found this random letter at the bottom of a random box.  It got me started on an exploration that took many weeks to unravel.