The Provincial Archives of Åland acquires and preserves a wide range of records that document the history of Åland. The Provincial Archives of Åland strives to preserve a balanced record of the province's history by acquiring records of both government and the private sector. The private records can belong to individuals, families and farms, as well as business organisations, community groups and associations.
How to donate records?
The process of donating or depositing records with us starts by contacting us. All potential acquisitions will be assessed in order to determine whether the records have permanent value. To do this, we ask that You provide at least the following information:
- how extensive the material is,
- which time period the material spans,
- what type of documents are included, and
- biographical or historical information on the person/persons, family, organisation or association that created the records being offered, if possible.
There is no need to sort or repackage the material You are submitting to us - our staff will take care of that.
Donation agreement
Anyone wishing to donate or deposit documents with us will be asked to sign a donation/deposit agreement. The purpose of the agreement is to clarify certain details of the donation/deposit, such as the ownership and the access to the documents in question.
To donate or to deposit?
Depositing documents on long-term means You will still own the records, but the Provincial Archives of Åland takes care of them on Your behalf. Signing a deposit agreement means You reserve the right to withdraw the records at a future date. In case of permanent withdrawal, the depositor may be liable to reimburse the Provincial Archives of Åland for expenses incurred for storage, cataloguing and conservation during the term of deposit.
Records that are donated will legally belong to the Provincial Archives of Åland. We will take care of the storage, cataloguing and conservation of the records. The records will be made available to public, if not otherwise agreed.
A template of the deposit and donation agreements can be found under attachments (in Swedish).
What happens to the donated records?
Once records have been delivered to the Provincial Archives of Åland:
- The records will be arranged, repackaged and described by our staff.
- The records will be stored in our archive facilities that are designed according to the relevant standards and regulations.
- Descriptions of the records will be made available in our reading room and possibly on our website.
- The records will be made available for genealogists, researchers, students and other interested parties in our reading room.
The person donating or depositing an archive will receive a copy of the archive inventory. You are always welcome to view the material You have donated or deposited in our reading room!