The archive boxes, holding countless photographs, documents, student and administrative files, publications, ephemera, and more, are fascinating, often telling a story as intriguing as their contents. The 70-year history of the University Archives is reflected in the evolution of box labels.
The boxes vary in shapes and sizes, each bearing a variety of labels that are essential for organization and retrieval. A typical archive box label might include:
- Accession number: A unique identifier for formally registering records into the Archives.
- Agency: The provenance of the records
- Series: Noted in place of the series title
- Range: noting number of items, e.g., 1-10; A-D: Smith, J – Smith, N etc
- Box No.
University of Sydney Archives standard box label
At the University of Sydney Archives, some labels contain irrelevant details, which can confuse researchers trying to note down the boxes they used. The Archives have undergone multiple relocations due to the installation of mobile shelving and building refurbishments, requiring meticulous planning to ensure the safe re-shelving of boxes and prevent losses. This planning is complicated by varying box sizes, sometimes necessitating shelf adjustments. Sequentially numbered stickers expedited shelving processes.
When new mobile shelving was introduced in the early 2000s, boxes were marked with round colored stickers (red, yellow, orange, white, and blue), corresponding to record groups:
- Red – University records, e.g., administrative records
- White – Copyright deposit publications
- Yellow – Personal papers
- Blue – Miscellaneous items
- Orange – Clubs and Societies
Written on the boxes was also the new shelf location – either on the sticker or on the box.
Top to bottom: Red label = Administrative files; white label = Copyright Deposit; and, yellow label = Personal Papers. Details of the new shelving location is on the coloured label or underneath it.
Boxes of personal papers, miscellaneous items, and clubs and societies also featured sequential running numbers (prefixed with “P”, “M”, or “S”) to aid re-shelving and quality control.
Orange label = Clubs and Societies with ‘S196’ written underneath and sequential numbering label on the bottom right used during the 2011-2013 relocation
Blue label = Miscellaneous with M19 written underneath and sequential numbering label on the bottom right used during the 2011-2013 relocation
During the Fisher Library refurbishment between 2011 and 2013, the Archives were relocated to the opposite end of the building on Level 9. Small handwritten labels with sequential numbering in different colours of ink were used similarly to the colored stickers.
Some boxes were moved offsite to secondary storage, marked with company labels and sequential tracking numbers (OS = off site) used by the Archives.
Box that was sent for storage offsite with company label and sequential numbering label used by the Archives.
Boxes transferred from Records management Services (RMS) have large white labels with a barcode and box number. The accession number is added when it is in the custody of the Archives.
A new small barcode label was introduced for better space management when the Archives Control System (ACS) transitioned to a new system between 2020 and 2023. The barcode resolved the issue of duplicate box numbers (e.g., multiple boxes numbered “1”), simplifying metadata requirements. These smaller labels also include the series or accession numbers.
Remarkably, some boxes from the 1950s/60s remain in use, retaining their original stickers and what appears to be chalked sequential numbering.
Regardless of the Archive you consult, it is essential to confirm with staff the specific details needed to reference box contents or request the boxes again, as systems vary across Archives.
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