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Hi All,

When I asked the group what their thoughts and decisions have been on the
matter of binding versus boxing collections of periodicals, I was asked to
share my findings. Here is a list of comments from librarians who weighed
in. I hope it is ok to share with everyone your name in order to keep the
conversation going.

The MoMA Library has not made a definitive decision yet on the matter. I am
still curious to hear from other institutions who are faced with the
same dilemma.

Rachael

-----------------------------

*A quick response,

With the reduction of budgets, we determined that binding of periodicals
was no longer necessary for a significant number of our titles and that
boxes worked just fine and in some cases were preferred by those that still
use print periodicals.

JANE A. CARLIN
Library Director
Collins Memorial Library
University of Puget Sound
1500 N. Warner St. CMB #1021
Tacoma, WA. 98416-1021

---------------------------

Now that we are doing a lot of digitization and exhibition of these
materials, we are leaning towards housing periodicals in phase boxes rather
than binding. We haven't yet had a formal discussion about this issue, but
there seems to be a consensus building.

Best,
Sara
***
Sara Smith
Archives & Special Collections
Frost Library, Amherst College
Amherst, MA 01002
413-542-5390

-----------------------------

I used to chair the periodicals committee at Pratt in Brooklyn,
and we acquired an increasing number of "special" periodicals,
which we believed should not (or even could not) be bound.

They were special in format or material (oversize, delicate, containing
loose parts
like flip books, stickers, posters, zines or magazine inserts, etc.) or
published irregularly
enough for a binding schedule to be difficult.
They were kept loose on the shelves in the special collections area (the
"cage"),
but they definitely should have been and hopefully have been put in
archival boxes or hanging folders.

Susan Thomas

Susan E. Thomas
Coordinator of Reference Services
Assistant Professor
Long Island University
Brooklyn Campus Library
718.246.6382

------------------------------

Hello,
I recommend binding. Then the issues can’t wander off on their own.

since you asked,
Elizabeth Frenchman
Resource Librarian

Davis Brody Bond, LLP
Architects and Planners
315 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10013
Tel +1.212.633.7883 Fax +1.212.633.4760

---------------------------------

I work for a small special collections library. It was decided a few years
ago that the point of our library’s mission is to keep the books and
materials in our collection as “untouched” as possible. Thus, recent
preservation practices tend to involve simply re-housing many of our books
and periodicals in boxes or some sort of customized/customizable
enclosures. It’s been a very good experience for a few reasons: the
periodicals never have to be sent off-site, it’s easy to integrate any
potential missing issues in between the other issues, and (as follows our
preservation practices), the periodicals are more true to their original
format, and the cost for isn’t that much different than sending the
periodical bundle to the bindery.

We place our periodicals in archival “document” boxes, which work pretty
well for periodicals of a variety of shapes and sizes. The document boxes
come in widths of either 2.5 inches or 5 inches, and we use both of them
(the 2.5 inch ones for periodicals which don’t come that frequently, and
the 5 inch ones for periodicals which come rather often and would fill up
the box faster).

One can order such boxes at University Products:
http://www.universityproducts.com/cart.php?m=product_list&c=923&primary=1&parentId=1266&navTree[]=1266&navTree[]=1460&navTree[]=923

or at Gaylord:

http://www.gaylord.com/adblock.asp?abid=937&search_by=desc&search_for=document%20boxes&mpc=WW

I guess that some of the negative side effects of keeping our periodicals
in such boxes is that it’s a bit more difficult to see the
chronological/enumerative information on each periodical issue unless one
takes the whole stack of issues out of the box. Also, I’d recommend
putting some sort of padding (like tissue paper or bubble wrap) into the
boxes which aren’t yet entirely full, otherwise the excess space may cause
the individual issues to warp over time because they aren’t supported well.

I hope that this helps!

Best Wishes,
Lauren Paustian

------------------------------------------------

With loose issues in boxes you still have the problem of potential loss by
misplacement or theft. With bound volumes, however, you have the even
worse problem of degradation of the journal issues. Unless you opt for the
expensive "through-the fold" sewing, in a few years your journal issues
will suffer loss from problems of opening and eventual weakening of the
paper itself. The binding, on the other hand, will remain as strong as
ever.

-----------------------------------------------

Hello,
We haven't had any discussions on the point, but it's something I've been
thinking about. We've bound issues for a long time (way before my time)
and I've always found scanning and photocopying bound issues of journals to
be quite the chore. Having them loose would easily remedy that. Of
course, they are more likely to get damaged over time as well as single
issues misplaced or lost too. I'd love to hear what you end up doing.

Best,
Alison

Alison L. Huftalen
Head Librarian

419.255.8000 ext. 7386
[log in to unmask]

Toledo Museum of Art
PO Box 1013
Toledo, Ohio 43697

-------------------------------------------------------
We bind things if they aren’t too brittle, and box them if they are. But
so many of our titles are in frequent use for research that binding is far
preferable, even if the titles aren’t yet worn.

We’re still trying to figure out what to do with the large collection of
older forecasting materials we have, so this is very relevant to our
current concerns.

Thanks,

Beth McMahon
Library Periodicals Analyst
Fashion Institute of Technology

-------------------------------------------------------

Here at the American art/ Portrait Gallery Library we bind periodicals when
funds are allocated by the central administrative entity. “When & how much”
depends on the budget, which is relatively good this year. There is
off-site storage, but our library has sufficient room for bound and unbound
serials (and will for some time into the future.) The binding allocation
has shrink, but this is off-set by the growth in e-journals. We have also
stored a good amount of our serials in conservation boxes (or similar
types—board envelops) over the some 50 year history of the library. The
boxes, envelops, are required, for example, for the many newsprint
publications, restricted use little magazine, rare magazines, among others.
Our serials are accessed with unique a LC catalog number (AP1) and shelved
separately from the general collection. This is what makes the box and
board containers “work”; otherwise they would be too cumbersome. Some of
the boxes are huge.

I would never support ending the binding program, and we will always use
the various conservation containers. Note, we are undergoing an inventory
of the serials collection. I can give you a number later in the year. Our
collection is large enough, and used enough, to justify both.

*
* I am interested in developing a dialog with other librarians involved
with, for example, 19th and 20th C. small press periodicals (a category
that is housed in conservation containers here…)

Best,

Stephanie

Stephanie Moye
Serials Librarian
Smithsonian Institution Libraries
American Art/Portrait Gallery Branch Library
750 Ninth St., NW, Suite 2100
Washington, DC 20560

--------------------------------------------------------------

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