Archives are collections of original documents accumulated and saved over time. 

Collection guides or finding aids are the tools used to describe archival material so researchers can find them.

Primary sources are original documents created during an event or by someone with firsthand experience of that event. 

Research value is the informational usefulness of a document. 

For more archival vocabulary, check the Society of American Archivists Glossary of Archival and Records Terminology.  

This guide was originally created by Katie DeVries.