The purpose of Archoral is to reconnect people with their stories, their heritage, and their history. One of the best ways to do that is through connecting the “stuff” we have, be it scattered on the family farm or in a few boxes from the attic. No matter the size of your collection, the process and the intended result are the same.
So take a look around the room you’re sitting in right now. Your choice of books, movies, vases, and clothes—when all added together, they tell the story of YOU. Your parents had the same collection of stuff that told their story, so did their parents before them. As each generation passes on, belongings get passed forward—often blending together and diluting each generation’s story.
I’m thankful we were farmers because if you never sell the land, there’s no reason to clean out the barns! You just move each generation’s items aside and add in your own, so we had over 100 years of family heirlooms. When we decided it was time to sell and move from the farm, I packed each barn, the shop, the outbuildings, and brought the collections they held to Atlanta in hopes of one day uncovering the details of my family’s journeys.
Packing tips for artifacts:
Family history is held in the objects, not just the photos and documents. Identifying what’s in each box is paramount to the success of such a big move.
First – PLEASE don’t skimp on the sturdiness of the boxes! No one handles your belongings with the care that you do, you want the boxes to hold up to transport!
Second – I used colored duct tape to mark the main category of each box. Notice the tape is on all 4 sides of the box, wrapping from the top, over the edge. This helped both the movers and myself on the receiving end.
My chosen color coding:
- Pink – Fragile
- Yellow – Heavy (books,etc)
- Orange – Family albums, documents etc.
Third – When using a moving company, I chose not to write the contents of the box on the side. I created a code of my own. I’d write the code and box number on all four sides, as well as the top. Then, in a notebook, list the contents of said box.
This was helpful in keeping the contents private, and we also had boxes shipping to multiple locations. The code became a way to sort out what went on each truck.
My coding system:
- ATL – Miscellaneous items headed to Atlanta
- K – Kate’s personal items headed to Atlanta
- M – Personal items headed to Texas with Mom
- TX – Texas household items
Once I received the truck loads in Atlanta, everything went into multiple strategically packed storage units (climate-controlled, of course). What I had done was create a daunting task for myself! So I cleared out part of my art studio to focus on scanning documents and photos first. I thought this would be a good place to start…
This was a rough way to start this process… but while digitizing, I searched for a program to upload everything to.
I wanted a system that could accept information as I entered it, take the documentation from each piece in my collection – no matter how sporadic – and organize it for me.
I couldn’t find one that offered all of the features I wanted… so through these struggles, the idea of Archoral was born.
This is the key to what makes Archoral unique; we are media-based genealogy.
You don’t have to create the tree first and add each piece of media to a person. With us, each piece of information you input is a building block; we then organize it for you, creating profiles, timelines, trees, and so much more! We assemble your stories for you!
When you have a multigenerational collection, the objective is to separate the story of each generation so they can speak for the individuals.
Whether you refer to it as genealogy or family history, the goal is the same – to uncover the paths of those who came before you. Genealogy focuses on lineage, while family history delves into the specifics of their lives. Archoral is designed to seamlessly blend the two, helping you piece together the past to illuminate the rich tapestry of your ancestors and the legacy they’ve left for future generations.
By organizing and documenting the items I have, they will begin to tell stories of journeys, birthdays, and weddings. I will find addresses on old letters, and utility bills stuck between pages of books. Each piece guiding me along the journey of their lives. This, in turn, gives me names, dates, and locations, the knowledge I need to arm myself with the confidence to begin the genealogical quest of visiting archives in search of more documentation.
What better way to showcase what our media and memory-keeping application can do than to share the process of archiving my own collection?
Some fun stuff...
Daddy’s car goes the professional way!
