Archival and Special Collections have two major objectives:

• To preserve the physical diary in the best possible condition
• To make the diary available as easily as possible for research

Your originals have the benefit of being housed according to up-to-date conservation standards in Archival and Special Collections at the University of Guelph. When they arrive, they will be housed in acid-free archival storage containers to preserve them for the long-term. They will be catalogued to make them easily findable, and the online catalogue record will also acknowledge the donor of the diary if so desired. All researchers can then consult the originals in the reading room if no restrictions have been placed on the material.

When practicable and appropriate, portions of the diaries will be digitized and made available on the Rural Diary Archive website for transcription and/or searching.