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It's a painstaking process to conserve historical photos. First, Harry Ransom Center researchers undo the previous makeshift repairs by removing the adhesive residue with solvent. Then, the specialist finds the correct adhesive to use and lines up the pieces together. Finally, the images of history are once again whole.
The Harry Ransom Center's Conservation Center, located at the corner of 21st Street and Martin Luther King Boulevard, is celebrating its 25th anniversary with an exhibit of preserved artifacts ranging from a copy of the Magna Carta to the Texas Declaration of Independence.
An exhibit on the second floor showcases photographs of documents and items conserved by the center. The exhibit is open to the public through October.
"We are trying to give people a look into the work being done and highlight the small part the University is doing to protect documents," said Assistant Director James Stroud.
The 708-year-old signed copy of the Magna Carta was brought to the HRC after Texas billionaire H. Ross Perot purchased it and brought it back from Britain.
The document was in need of repair after shrinking in its frame as a result of the hot, dry environment of Texas. The conservation center worked to provide proper protective covering for the historical piece to control its surroundings.
In the sixth-floor hall, where the conservation and preservation is carried out, sits two refrigerators. When an item becomes water damaged, it will grow mold if left out, but freezing it will save the document until it's worked on. Because of environmental changes that may occur during transport from an item's previous location to Texas, many of the items from damp places such as Britain have mold, according to assistant conservator Mary Baughman. Freezing is also used in the case of insect infestation.
In an attempt to preserve the history that has been intrusted to them, the center tries to keep the items in original condition unless they are unreadable.
"There is information in how something is bound. It's not just words but the pages and the history," Baughman said.
The job of preserving history is not easy and not always safe. According to Barbara Brown, photograph conservator, 35mm motion picture film contains cellulose nitrate which can burst into flames at 100 degrees Fahrenheit or when enclosed in a container at lower temperatures. The center monitors the temperature where the film is stored.
Other items repaired at the center include the Texas Declaration of Independence and William B. Travis' "Victory or Death" letter.
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