Can 143 Year Old Diaries Fly?
I have a question about traveling with priceless family heirlooms. The heirloom in this case is a Civil War diary written by my ancestor John W. Breedlove during his years in the Army. He started out writing it with pen and ink, but during hard times, when supplies were likely non-existant, he resorted to using berry juice. One of my cousins has custody of the diary and lives across the country from me. He is going to be flying here next summer, and when I talked to him the other day about the trip to visit the west coast, I asked him if he would consider bringing the diary along with him. His quick reply was that he didn’t think he could bring it with him because he was afraid to take it through the x-rays at the airports.
I realize that even asking him to bring it with him is somewhat selfish, but this might be the only way that the rest of us descendants would get to see it in person. A good majority of us live here in Washington, and it would be cost prohibitive for us to fly to Florida. We have asked him to take pictures of some of the pages of the diary, but he hasn’t done it yet. What really tugs at my conscience too is that he has told us there is a list of men who were hanged as deserters in the diary.
So, the question is, would the diary be safe going through security if he hand carried it from Florida to Washington? What’s your opinion?
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Filed under: Genealogy, History
I think I would call my local historical museum, and ask for their advice, or whom they would ask for advice. Otherwise, I would call the county or state archivist, and ask them. They probably have good advice about conserving that wonderful old manuscript, and how best to share the contents, too.
I also think there’s a way to work with the airlines in advance so that it doesn’t have to go through the x-ray machine. It’s worth calling the airline to find out.
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I think too, there are ways to travel with film in safety pouches, so maybe that is something that could be used for protection. I just wonder if the x-rays would actually harm the book anyway. Jostling around might do it more harm than any rays.
Thanks for your advice.
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I have been a member of the Society of American Archivists and a practicing archivist for over twenty years. I have never heard of any paper document being damaged by one or two x-rays. Florida weather is more damaging than a trip across the continent in hand-held.
To give your diary utmost security, it should be copied (xeroxed) front to back, and then these copies should be be distributed to several different locations (or relatives). The original should be stored in a climatized environment, like a bank vault, in an acid free container where it will be protected from heat and light. Acid free containers can be purchased at most stationary stores or on line. Handling of the original document should be minimal and done only for reproduction purposes. The diary itself is not as valuable as the information it contains. Unless original autographs or drawings are included, diaries of this type are best copied and then stored permanently.
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