Friday, September 25, 2009

National Archives: The Northeast Region

Ancestrymagazine.com has just posted Exploring the National Archives in New York City, a helpful "visit to the National Archives and Records Administration–Northeast Region," with thumbnail sketches of its quite various collections. The piece, written, I believe, by Ted Naanes, commences:
The National Archives and Records Administration-Northeast Region is tucked away in the heart of Manhattan, in the nation’s cultural and financial center. The artifacts of our country’s diverse history are preserved in more than 65,000 cubic feet of carefully organized and managed records. The Northeast Region oversees an enormous variety of valuable information, from court records and military documents to immigration records from Ellis Island. Records held by the region date from 1685 to 1983, and many of them are unique—they do not exist anywhere else in their original form. Between 11,000 and 12,000 visitors visit the facility each year to take advantage of research and archival services and workshops. These visitors include historians, legal researchers, designers and architects learning from past mistakes and successes, and devoted family historians seeking clues about their ancestors. The archives staff, led by director Robert C. Morris, lends expert assistance to all these researchers.