FAQ
History of the State Archives
Question: How long has the State Archives been around?
Answer: Prior to 1909, the Office of the Secretary of State was responsible for keeping and caring for the state’s official records of historical value. In 1909, the General Assembly designate the State Library as the official State Archives. For more information, check out the time line of Important Dates in the History of the State Archives
State Archives Collections
Question: How many records are in the State Archives?
Answer: The State Archives holds over 53,000 cu. ft. of records or 132.5 million pages. If each item was the size of a standard piece of paper (8.5 x 11 inches) and we laid them end to end it would stretch 23,000 miles or nearly the entire circumference of the earth. We are also hold 5 TB of electronic records that have existed only in a digital format. That is equal to approximately 255 million pages.
Preservation of Historical Records
Question: Why don’t you scan everything and get rid of the paper?
Answer: While the State Archives does digitize archival records and manuscript materials in our collections, it is primarily to improve public access or reduce handling of fragile or damaged records. Keeping the original documents, photographs, maps, and other types of physical archival material is still the standard practice for government archives. This is true not just in Connecticut but across the country and the globe.
Digitizing all paper records might appear to be a quick fix, but it’s not a permanent solution. Paper and microfilm are readable for hundreds of years if stored properly. Digital files can become inaccessible very quickly due to the rapidly changing nature of the technology used to create and access electronic records. And digitization doesn’t save money. In fact, digitizing and maintaining permanent records and information is more expensive over time than retaining the paper records. Without constant monitoring and software and equipment updates, which cost money, we risk losing the very records we aimed to preserve.
Currently, the total estimated cost to prepare and digitize 10,000 cubic feet (cu. ft.) (25 million pages) is $1.76 billion dollars. This breaks out to be $70.31 per page x 2,500 single-side pages per cubic foot for a cost of $175,775 per cubic foot. Too digitize the more than 53,000 cu. ft held by the State Archives, it would cost the state more than $9.3 billion dollars.
The real cost is likely much higher because archival records come in different sizes, shapes, and conditions. They are created on many kinds of materials: thick or thin paper or something other than paper. Most have information on both sides of the page and are often bound in volumes. The print or handwriting may be dark or faint, barely legible, or covered in stains and barely visible. Individual pages may require unfolding and flattening. Digitization requires multiple types of scanner equipment that can capture information from bound volumes, oversize items, fragile items, etc. That equipment needs to be refreshed roughly every 3-5 years due to heavy usage and technological developments.
After digitization, we must be able to find a document. That requires us to collect certain standardized data about each record or page that links to the image created. Simply having a computer search all the text in all the documents would use up unnecessary resources and produce a large number of false positives. While artificial intelligence (AI) might help with this process in the future, we would likely have to develop large language models (LLM) tailored to specific digital collections to be useful. It is primarily a human process for the foreseeable future.
Once records are digitized, they need to reside somewhere. The proper physical storage is still necessary for true long-term archival stability. Amazon Web Services (AWS) S3 Standard cloud storage costs an estimated 0.276 cents per gigabyte per year. Amazon Web Services storage for 122 terabytes (TB) of records would cost an estimated $34,484 or $103,452 for three years. The estimated total cost of storing 1.2 petabytes (PB) in Amazon Web Services (AWS) S3 for three years is $993,600. In addition to the storage fees, there are fees to retrieve the records from storage and multiple other fees.
The State Archives receives on average 1,000 cubic feet per state fiscal year of permanent archival paper records, digitizing that amount per year would cost approximately $175.8 million and would require an additional 122 (TB) of storage each year at an additional $34,484.
Access to the State Archives Collections
Question: How can I look at the records?
Answer: Researchers, genealogists and the general public can access archival records and other research information through the History & Genealogy Unit at the State Library’s main building at 231 Capitol Ave., Hartford, CT during regular business hours. For more information visit our website or call 860-757-6500 or Ask a Librarian. Explore our digital collections through our online content guide.
Please Note: Some archival records stored at our off-site facility are unavailable in preparation for the installation of new compact shelving. State Archives staff anticipates these records will gradually be made available starting in late Fall 2025. For the status of specific record groups, contact the History and Genealogy Unit reference staff by email: CSL.ISREF@ct.gov or phone: (860) 757-6580, or State Archives staff by email: CT.Archives@ct.gov. We apologize for any inconvenience and appreciate your patience during this time.
Transfer of Historical State Agency or Municipal Records
Question: How do we transfer state agency or municipal records to the State Archives?
Answer: State agency staff members should work with their agency’s Records Management Liaison Officer (RMLO) to transfer public records with permanent archival value to the State Archives. Municipal agencies should contact State Archives staff directly.
For guidelines and procedures on transferring records refer to State Archives Policy 01: Transfer of Historical Records to the State Archives or Other Approved Archival Repository and Procedures for the Transfer of Historical Public Records to the State Archives.
Individual Donations
Question: I have photographs, scrapbooks, and other old items I would like saved for the future. How do I donate them to the Connecticut State Archives?
Answer: Individuals and groups interested in donating items related to Connecticut history to the Connecticut State Archives should contact State Archivist Allen Ramsey through CT State Archives.
According to IRS rules, the State Library or its staff cannot appraise any materials for monetary value nor can staff recommend specific appraisers. Potential donors can find a list of certified appraisers from either the American Society of Appraisers or the Appraisers Association of America.
