National+Archives



====The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is the nation's record keeper. Of all documents and materials created in the course of business conducted by the United States Federal government, only 1%-3% are so important for legal or historical reasons that they are kept by us forever. ====
 * The National Archives:**

**What is an archive?**
An archives is a place where people can go to gather firsthand facts, data, and evidence from letters, reports, notes, memos, photographs, and other primary sources. The National Archives is the U.S. Government’s collection of documents that records important events in American history. The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is the Government agency that preserves and maintains these materials and makes them available for research.

More than 95 percent of the records in the National Archives are declassified, meaning they are available to all researchers. NARA employs approximately 3,000 full- and part-time employees to help facilitate the use of its holdings. Many of the records in the National Archives are available on microfilm, and more than 124,000 digital images of documents can be seen through NARA’s Archival Research Catalog (ARC). Some of the oldest materials in the National Archives are on parchment and date back to the founding of the United States of America. These include the records of the Continental and Confederation Congresses. Some of the more recent holdings include electronic files transferred from the Department of State and are available online through Access to Archival Databases (AAD). To help preserve material, NARA stores archives records in acid-free folders within acid-free boxes that are placed in dark spaces with consistent temperature and humidity. For many years Federal records were created on paper and stored in files and boxes. These days electronic records are created by government agencies at an astounding rate. To meet this challenge, the National Archives is finding news ways to manage and preserve electronic materials. Learn more about our Electronic Records Archives initiative. Anyone over the age of 14 with valid identification can conduct research in any of the NARA facilities.

**Branches**
==== O riginally, each branch and agency of the U.S. government was responsible for maintaining its own documents, which often resulted in the loss and destruction of records. Congress established the National Archives Establishment in 1934 to centralize federal record keeping, with the Archivist of the United States as its chief administrator. The National Archives was incorporated into the General Services Administration in 1949, but in 1985 it became an independent agency as NARA (National Archives and Records Administration). ==== ====Most of the documents in the care of NARA are in the public domain, as works of the federal government are excluded from copyrightprotection. However, some documents that have come into the care of NARA from other sources may still be protected by copyright or donor agreements. ====



The National Archives Building, known informally as Archives I, located north of the National Mall on Constitution Avenue in Washington D.C., of the United States and its government: the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. It also hosts a copy of the 1297 Magna Carta confirmed by Edward I.These are displayed to the public in the main chamber of the National Archives, which is called the Rotunda for the Charters of Freedom//.// The National Archives Building also exhibits other important American historical documents such as the Louisiana Purchase Treaty, the Emancipation Proclamation, and collections of photography and other historically and culturally significant American artifacts. Once inside the Rotunda for the Charters of Freedom, there are no lines to see the individual documents and visitors are allowed to walk from document to document as they wish. For over 30 years the National Archives have forbidden flash photography but the advent of digital cameras with automatic flashes have made the rules increasingly difficult to enforce. As a result, all filming, photographing, and videotaping by the public in the exhibition areas has been prohibited since February 25, 2010.




 * "What Is the National Archives and Records Administration?" // National Archives and Records Administration //. Web. 03 Apr. 2011. .
 * "National Archives and Records Administration." // Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia //. Web. 03 Apr. 2011. [].
 * By Marifer Alexandre **