Create your organization system before visiting the archive.
Write the ‘how’ and ‘why’ of your system in your research log
Consistency is key!
Use the same organization system for both your physical and digital archival assets
Use a File Naming Convention (FNC)
FNC standardized naming system to give each file a unique name; name reflects the contents of the file; works for all types f files (text, image, audio, etc.)
Tips for creating a FNC:
Abbreviate the archive name, collection name, box #, folder #, etc.
Separate words with an underscore (_) and avoid special characters (!, @, #, $, %, ^, &, *, etc.)
Optional: include series and date visited (using a standard notation, e.g. YYYYMMDD)
For periodicals: include the title of periodical, year, month, and day
Example of a FNC: OU_BSFarnum_SeriesLegis_Box2_FolderVotingRecord_Item01
