AtoM-izing Archival Collections

Launched in March 2020 (really!), the McGovern Historical Center (MHC)’s archival management system utilizes Artefactual’s AtoM (Access to Memory) application to provide access to archival finding aids as well as digitized and born digital assets. This short presentation will walk through the MHC’s workflow for creating archival description, importing it into AtoM via CSV, and making it available online.This lightning talk will give particular emphasis to the workflow as it relates to digital objects. The CSV upload includes links to Amazon S3, where the MHC stores its access files. From there, AtoM automatically generates thumbnail representations, which appear in-line with the archival description and link out to the full-size access files.While nothing is perfect, the MHC’s systems and workflow offer efficiencies for a small staff and seamless discoverability for users.