Personal and institutional manuscripts and paper collections of unique research value that document the lives of Floridians or may be distinguished by their specialized subject matter, age, uniqueness, or value.
Finding Aids are tools designed to help researchers understand manuscript and archival collections. They contain a number of elements or sections that describe the creators, the materials in the collection, and how it is organized. Finding aids they may include:
Overview: Title, dates, extent/size, and a brief description of the collection.
Biographical/Historical note: Narrative description of the biography or history of the individual or organizational creator of the collection
The Collection: An overview of the contents and physical arrangement of each collection. The Scope and content note describes what is in the collection, and Series Description would provide a brief description of the intellectual arrangement of a collection
Container list: List that provides a comprehensive and detail access to the physical arrangement of the contents of a collection in boxes and folders
Administrative information: Acquisition, access, and use information.
Finding aids may also include other useful resources related to each collection such as related materials or collections hold in the Archives
