Who would want old natural science archives?

July 2, 2007 5:40 PM

Who would want old natural science archives? I'm a librarian who is doing volunteer work for a big natural science museum. They have dumped their old printed journals, surveys, etc. in a warehouse and I've been sitting on a stool sorting through it, recording what is there.

So far, the first 13 boxes have contained old bird watching journals (some very charming); many Dept of the Interior Geological Surveys from all over the world (1876 - 1996), many academic journals, some from Harvard from the late 1800's, etc. The main problem is that a lot of the journals et al were "removed" before they were stored (by a local state university among others) and, as a result, there are not many complete annual sets.

My task is to record the collection in a spreadsheet and try to sell off as much as possible as its taking up space in the warehouse and is expensive to store. Would anyone actually want to buy any of this stuff? They are keeping items locally relevant and everything printed before 1900.

If I can't find buyers I'm supposed to find out if anyone would want it for free and will agree to pay the shipping costs.

Thank you

posted by Tullyogallaghan to science & nature (23 comments total)

People will buy anything.
eBay.
posted by Methylviolet at 6:01 PM on July 2, 2007

If the older publications have interesting illustrations of flora and fauna, or maps, then the odds of an audience increases greatly. Check Alibris and Abebooks for starters, and more specialized antiquarian sites if you think you've got something rare.
posted by zippy at 6:03 PM on July 2, 2007

eBay, Craig's List, Freecycle and [more inside] are good things to know.

Seriously, how could you know what the market value of the stuff is, unless you market it?
posted by paulsc at 6:04 PM on July 2, 2007

- Ebay, in bulk (like a year or five at a time), make sure you mention pertinent things like decent illustrations or well known authors who have written for them, if you know.
- buy a classified ad in Library Journal or American Libraries, same deal.
- craigslist
- freecycle

I personally would like some old bird watching journals. I bet there are others who feel the same.
posted by jessamyn at 6:05 PM on July 2, 2007

If the Geological Society papers are anything like the Interior's Ethnography papers they are worth $100-$200 per volume. These would also be prime fodder for the google library scanning project. They're all out of copyright, no.
posted by jmgorman at 6:05 PM on July 2, 2007

I personally would like some old bird watching journals. I bet there are others who feel the same.

I would like to see some of those as well. Don't know if I could afford them but I would definitely like to see them.

The Library Company of Philadelphia specializes in preserving and housing books that have to do with American culture and society, mostly things from 1600 to 1800. I know you said you were keeping the books from before 1900 but if you change your mind about any, please consider contacting them to see if they want them - it's a great place and a great resource.
posted by iconomy at 6:20 PM on July 2, 2007

I don't have an answer for you except for this: DO NOT THROW THEM AWAY. Somebody somewhere wants it, and whether it gets to them via Ebay, library auction, or whatever, it's going to be invaluable to them.
posted by BlackLeotardFront at 6:30 PM on July 2, 2007

Homeschoolers?
posted by konolia at 6:31 PM on July 2, 2007

You could contact back issue dealers to see if they'd be interested.
posted by initapplette at 6:31 PM on July 2, 2007

To the right geologist, those Dept of the Interior Geological Surveys from all over the world (1876 - 1996), would be very useful. Please don't throw them away. I would contact the AGU as a starting point.
posted by Eringatang at 6:43 PM on July 2, 2007

There is an entire academic discipline dedicated to the history of science. I imagine that many in this discipline would fine these materials to be a treasure trove, particularly if you make them available via sale or donation to libraries. I urge you to look into this before selling them piecemeal on ebay.

Try the website of the History of Science Society.

Also, post this question to relevant discussions groups on the H-Net listserv, particularly the H-Sci-Med-Tech list.

Finally, you could contact the major departments of the history of science and see if any of them can convince their libraries to purchase some of your materials: Harvard, Wisconsin, Penn, Johns Hopkins.

If you're really industrious, track down leading hiastorians of the relevant branch of science. Here is one of the world's leading historians of geology, Martin Rudwick. He might be interested, or know others who woul.
posted by googly at 6:49 PM on July 2, 2007

My spelling abandoned me in the last paragraph. *historians; *would.
posted by googly at 6:50 PM on July 2, 2007

have you checked into the institutions that 'removed' the other parts of the collection. They might be interested.
posted by ArgentCorvid at 6:55 PM on July 2, 2007

Some Geological Survey stuff is going for good money at AbeBooks. And zippy's comment about illustrations and maps is worth repeating; there's a decent market for some of those, and lots of dealers cut them out and sell them individually. It's probably worth talking to a geographer, map dealer or rare book dealer in your area, as well as doing your own searching.
posted by mediareport at 6:59 PM on July 2, 2007

DO NOT THROW THEM AWAY. Somebody somewhere wants it

This is not strictly true, I've been in this exact situation. The standard academic journals especially may simply no longer be useful. A stop of last resort would be to donate anything you can't sell or that a collector doesn't want to a local theatre company or prophouse for use as props. You may also find a crafty-type selling things on etsy that is inspired to turn what no longer has value as a book into something that does have value.
posted by Mozzie at 7:00 PM on July 2, 2007

is going for good money

Or, perhaps more accurately, "has a high price being asked."
posted by mediareport at 7:00 PM on July 2, 2007

Subscribe to the Archives & Archivists list and post the list as free (cost of shipping) or best offer. They'll move.
posted by Scram at 8:44 PM on July 2, 2007

Are they available in electronic form? If so, they could probably be tossed. Otherwise, by throwing them out you are destroying the work they contained, and possible the only remnants of contributions people have made to society. Yes, this does sound a bit ridiculous but this sort of thing bothers me. I'd start calling the libraries of universities, if not the specific departments that would be interested in these journals. Someone, somewhere, will want them.
posted by Loto at 9:27 PM on July 2, 2007

Seconding the Archives & Archivists list - and, even if they are in electronic form, paper is much more reliable for long term (if someone is keen on keeping them for the long term and they are unique or originals).

There must be an archivist or curator on staff that might know something about the uniqueness of the items (and who also might make you think twice about selling them on ebay - an archive could care for the items and make them available to researchers).
posted by ethel at 9:44 PM on July 2, 2007

Exhaust all sales options.

However, if they're truly going to be thrown away, my email is in my profile. I'd be willing to pick up the shipping tab (to an extent) so as to scan most/all of it into digital form, especially if there are illustrations.
posted by The Esteemed Doctor Bunsen Honeydew at 9:55 PM on July 2, 2007

Anything with good illustrations would be of interest to collage artists. ebay and etsy are the best avenues.
posted by slowstarter at 10:14 PM on July 2, 2007

Contact an appropriate church to help you find a library in Africa that can make good use of them.
posted by yclipse at 5:00 AM on July 3, 2007

If all else fails, try to interest artsy types--people making altered books, and collages and whatnot, might well be interested.

(Was it the LA County library that did that altered-discard-book invitation art show?)
posted by box at 5:23 AM on July 3, 2007