Report to the Business Archives Council by Falkirk Archives: Cataloguing the Falkirk Football Club Collection

Lucy MacIver Project Archivist Falkirk Archives

June 2021

Contents

Introduction ...... 3 Background ...... 4 Club Background ...... 4 Recruitment ...... 7 Work Plan ...... 8 The Project ...... 8 1. Conservation ...... 8 2. Cataloguing ...... 15 3. Covid-19 ...... 19 Outcomes ...... 20 Next Steps ...... 22 Lessons Learned ...... 22 Appendices ...... 24 Appendix 1: Project Budget...... 24 Appendix 2: Work Plan ...... 25 Appendix 3: Collection Hierarchy ...... 28 Appendix 4: Collection level description ...... 30 Appendix 5: Example of Vernon Descriptions ...... 32

Introduction Falkirk Archives were delighted to receive the 2019 Business Archives Council Cataloguing Grant for a Business Archive Relating to Sport. As an archive with only one full-time and two part-time members of staff, winning this £4000 grant provided much needed funds which were used to pay for additional staffing hours, enabling the in-depth cataloguing of the Falkirk Football and Athletic Limited business collection. In 2018, the “Falkirk F.C.: A Fan’s View” exhibition was held in Falkirk’s Callendar House, the same building which houses Falkirk Archives. This was a collaborative project and exhibition between Falkirk Museums and a museum volunteer who was also an avid Falkirk Football Club fan and historian. Through his contacts with senior staff from the club, he was able to borrow several museum objects and archival documents for display in the exhibition. During conversations with club officials and Falkirk Museums, the archival items of the collection were brought to the attention of Falkirk’s archivist, who voiced concern for the current condition of the collection as well as recognising its importance as a historical collection for the local area. The club was initially reticent to give away its heritage collection, even to a local public archive. However, they were eventually convinced by Falkirk’s archivist to permanently donate the collection, in large part thanks to his intentions to apply for the BAC grant, knowing that it would be thoroughly cared for, catalogued, and made available to all club fans through being held by their local archive service in Falkirk town. This collection represents the largest single sports collection accession into Falkirk Archives’ holdings, considerably enhancing their existing sports and local business holdings. We at the archive feel that the addition of the archive of this nationally significant local football club, brings with it the potential to invite not only new kinds of research within Falkirk Archive, but also to attract new researchers from sections of the community previously under-represented there. After being awarded the BAC grant, this mutually beneficial cataloguing project was able to begin in October 2019. However, it met with unfortunate timing due to the impact of the Covid- 19 pandemic in early 2020. National lockdowns of museums meant that Callendar House (housing Falkirk Archives) remained closed to both staff and the public since March 2020, resulting in staff being unable to access the collection for over 13 months. Despite this and other setbacks with the project, thanks to the bulk of the project already having been completed, the project archivist was able to continue digital cataloguing work from home and the FFC catalogue was able to be published online through Falkirk Archives digital catalogue in April 2020. Following staff gaining access to the collection once more in May 2021, the revised final version is now fully searchable for members of the public. Appointments to consult items from the newly catalogued collection in person within Falkirk Archives at Callendar House were finally possible in May 2021.

Background Club Background Falkirk Football Club is a Scottish professional association football club and a member of the Scottish Professional Football League which was founded and remains based in the town of Falkirk in Stirlingshire. There is conflicting evidence regarding the actual date Falkirk F.C. was founded, but the majority of evidence seems to support 1876. In 1883/84, Falkirk F.C. was a founding club in the Stirlingshire Football Association and was admitted to the Scottish Football League in the 1902/03 season. In 1905, the club was incorporated under the Companies' Act as the Falkirk Football and Athletic Club Limited. Not simply a popular local club, Falkirk F.C. became a nationally significant team, winning the Scottish Cup twice in their history; once in 1913 and again in 1957, and having been runners up on three other occasions.

Figure 1: Item FFC/M/3/1, showing Falkirk F.C. scoring their winning goal in the 1957 Scottish Cup final.

From 1885, the club’s home stadium was Brockville Park on Hope Street in Falkirk town. Brockville Park was demolished towards the end of 2003, having remained largely unchanged for decades, as it was considered unsafe to host matches following several high-profile UK stadium disasters in the 1980s. On several occasions, Falkirk were denied entry to the Scottish Premier League because of the stadium’s inadequate seating and facilities and eventually the club moved to their new Falkirk Park stadium, after a brief stint ground-sharing with Stenhousemuir. Falkirk F.C. are better known as "the Bairns", a nickname derived from the old burgh of Falkirk motto, "Better meddle wi' the De'il than the Bairns of Falkirk."

Figure 2: P32340; A photograph of the Falkirk team posing at their first home grounds at Brockville Park after winning the Scottish Cup in 1957. It clearly shows one of the stands for supporters which were considered too dangerous by the 1990s, leading to the demolition of the stadium in 2003.

About the collection The Falkirk Football Club (FFC) collection consists of materials which have been produced and amassed by the club almost throughout its entire history, with item production dates spanning over 120 years (from 1882-2007). It largely consists of the club’s financial, marketing, and administrational materials, including several board meeting minute books, with a full run of board minutes from 1924-1956. The bulk of items are promotional materials such as photographs including a great number of press photographs and several large, framed team photographs and hand-drawn portraits which were previously displayed in one of the team’s stadium grounds. There are also more limited documents covering payroll, club shareholders, premises, and operation of SFA Youth Initiative. At some point the papers from the Brockville Development Association, or "The Brockville Club", have also been added to the Falkirk F.C. materials and stored together by the club. The BDA being a fan organised fundraising body distinct and separate from Falkirk Football and Athletic Club. There are materials covering administration of the BDA and their fundraising, along with the materials relating to the running of The Brockville Club’s bar and café premises within Falkirk in the 1950s-1970s.

Figure 3: Falkirk’s archivist, Paul Choi, inspecting collection materials in the Falkirk Stadium storeroom where they were stored for years before being moved to Falkirk Archives.

Before Falkirk Archives took possession of this collection in 2019, it had been stored under one of the stands at Falkirk Stadium in damp and relatively unsanitary conditions. It is possible that much of the collection had been stored here since the club’s move from Brockville Park to Falkirk Stadium in 2003. This scenario is, unfortunately, not unique to this business archive collection. While businesses like Falkirk F.C. may be loosely aware of the inherent business, social and heritage value of their archival collection, without funds or in-house expertise available to ensure these materials are taken care of properly, many businesses are unable to utilize or safe-guard archive collection materials in an appropriate manner. The business cannot afford to invest in its heritage materials, even where the collection itself is such a rich source of business, local and sporting heritage such as in the case of the Falkirk F.C. collection. Following the discussions surrounding this collection and later its donation to Falkirk Archive, the relationship between the club the Archive has now been firmly established for the future. Discussion between the two is ongoing regarding further deposits to the archives and the potential of materials being deposited at regular intervals, to the mutual benefit of both. As the collection is not static the approach to cataloguing this Archive has to reflect the best arrangement for the collection as it exists now, now but still retain flexibility for future potential accruals.

BAC Grant Following the Falkirk F.C. museum exhibition "A Fan's View" in 2018 (which was a collaboration with Falkirk Museums and one of our museum volunteers), Falkirk Archives became aware of the collection in its home within Falkirk Stadium. Archive staff requested that the club donate the materials to the archive both for the sake of ensuring its long-term preservation and so that the wider community could access and enjoy the materials. Club officials had previously been reluctant to part with the materials, even though they were not being fully utilized by the club

6 or cared for correctly, due to fears of losing access to their own archives, as well as not being aware of the declining condition of the collection materials. The club’s decision to finally donate the collection in August 2019 was largely influenced by the proposal of an application for the Business Archives Council’s Cataloguing Grant for a Business Collection Relating to Sport. Knowing that this grant could ensure that the expertise, time and resources could be made available so that this businesses collection was looked after and catalogued to the highest level in the immediate future. Falkirk Archives took custody of the collection and was awarded this grant shortly after in September 2019, with conservation and cataloguing work on the collection beginning in October 2019. With 2019 being the first year the BAC created and awarded a grant for a business related to sport – this makes the Falkirk F.C. collection the very first winner of this grant. This was a huge moment for the club, for Falkirk Archives and for the Falkirk area, and the archive staff involved were thrilled and grateful that the council was recognising the historic and social significance of the materials, their research potential, and their community appeal.

Recruitment In order to complete the project within a six-month span, it was decided that the £4000 funding from the BAC grant was allocated for 32 days of freelance staffing at a rate of £125 per day - using staffing costs of previous BAC cataloguing projects as a guide. Given the relatively small size of the collection, this was intended to give ample time for a Project Archivist to transport, fully list, catalogue, rehouse, and write reports, as well as adding the collection to the Falkirk Archives digital catalogue, and Archives Hub to maximise the ability to search for and access this collection. If there was any time remaining on the project following this, it was envisioned that suitable collection materials could be digitised and images added to the Falkirk Archive catalogue (the bulk of the collection being photographs). This project was intended to start in October 2019 and finish in March 2020, with a Project Cataloguer working 1-2 days each week within Callendar House where they would have the supervision and assistance of Falkirk’s Archivist, as well as access to the archive’s conservation materials and reference library. Because of the poor state of the collection and its current storage conditions, moving the collection and rehousing it properly was deemed an urgent priority for the Archive. We were keen to appoint someone who could hit the ground running, and who had some knowledge of sports or business archives. Equally we wanted to appoint someone for whom the experience would be useful for their career development. Given the level of funding and timescale of this project along with the need to start work on the collection immediately, it was decided upon to staff the project through the offer of additional hours to an existing part-time Archives Assistant at Falkirk Archives, working under the supervision of the Archivist. As well as having existing experience of cataloguing business collections, holding a post-graduate qualification in Information Management and Preservation, and having the flexibility to work on such a short-term project, this member of staff was also already familiar with Falkirk Archives and Falkirk local history. From working within Falkirk Archive’s as an Archives Assistant, they also had an existing relationship with the volunteer who had worked for Falkirk Museums in organising the Falkirk F.C. exhibition previously.

Work Plan While the BAC grant which this collection was awarded was explicitly intended as a cataloguing grant, the poor condition of the collection necessitated that several of the first staffed days allocated to the Project Archivist needed to be spent relocating, quarantining, and cleaning large sections of the collection before it could be catalogued, rehoused, and relocated to our storerooms for public access. Given the frequently changing nature of this project, the creation of a flexible work plan was essential from the outset to ensure each phase of the project could be carried out within the timescale allowed. While an initial work plan and time scale was set out for the project, this has had to be amended several times, with the Project Archivist also needing to work around council transportation availability, purchasing specialist conservation materials, availability of preservation treatments at National Museums of Scotland (NMS), and later restricted access and home-working due to Covid-19. While the initial work plan was intended to provide as much flexibility as possible, it was fortunate that a candidate who was accommodating and adaptable to such upsets and setbacks in working was used for this project – often being able to move around their Archives Assistant staffed days and Project Archivist days to suit the demands of this project. This eventually encompassed work into May 2021 completing documentation for this project after an unprecedented closure of Falkirk Archives for over 13 months due to Covid-19. (see Appendix 2)

The Project 1. Conservation The first stage of the project involved moving the collection from storage within Falkirk Stadium into Callendar House, where Falkirk Archives’ main storerooms are located. In its found state at Falkirk Stadium, the FFC materials formed a very bulky collection, due largely to the number of large, framed pictures included in it. This combined with the presence of broken glass from inside picture frames and the fragility of the items made transportation for the collection difficult. Falkirk Archives are fortunate in having access to Falkirk Council’s patrol vehicles, who were able to move the collection for us both within Falkirk and farther afield when this became necessary. While the collection had been quickly assessed by the Archivist before it was donated to Falkirk Archives, he had been unable to spend any great amount of time examining individual items. Whilst the collection was initially being moved from the stadium storeroom for transport, it was discovered that many items were infested with black mould, and multiple pest varieties. Due to this, the collection materials were initially transported to and quarantined in Falkirk Town Hall theatre while plans for cleaning the collection were made. There were significant delays in starting the actual cataloguing element of the project while a method of cleaning the materials was devised and carried out, and suitable outside conservation assistance was obtained from the NMS Conservation Services in Edinburgh.

Conservation issues As mentioned, the FFC collection had been stored under one of the stadium stands, possibly since the club’s move to Falkirk Stadium in 2003. There were no temperature or moisture

8 provisions or controls here such as we have in the archive, which are essential for paper and photograph conservation. This was clearly intended to be a temporary storage solution, but unfortunately the collection ended up being stored here for far too long. Some items had been stored in plastic carrier bags where they had gotten wet and had never been able to dry out fully in the dark storeroom, and this damp had caused staples, paper clips and metal fastenings to rust badly.

Figure 4: Another framed photograph from the Falkirk F.C. collection in its found state. Although conditions were clearly not ideal for archival materials, the level of damage they had sustained from their storage here had not even been ascertained yet.

Figure 5: This photograph shows an item from the worst affected section of the collection. Some items had somehow gotten fully wet, causing extensive rust, mould and water damage to pages. These damaged items will need to remain restricted for the foreseeable future because of the extent of this damage to pages.

Archive staff also quickly established that many items were infested with black mould, paper lice (which feed on mould and the glue from book bindings), and moth larvae (which were found feeding on the cloth and leather bindings of the oldest minute ledgers). As well as being a hazard to health, black mould is extremely dangerous to paper archives. Mould can easily spread from one archive object to another, infecting entire collections. It is for this reason that archives are stored in environmentally monitored rooms, where the temperature, moisture and sunlight that can negatively impact paper can all be controlled. Just as worrying, however, were the insect larvae which were suspected to be moth larvae. These pests can infect not only the textiles on books, as with the Falkirk F.C. collection, but can spread throughout the antique furnishings and textile objects in a historical building such as Callendar House. The Gallery of Costume in Platt House in Manchester closed for three years and eventually had to be relocated thanks to an infestation of clothes moths throughout the building! Both Falkirk’s Archivist and Museum Curator were understandably eager to avoid any such infestation at Callendar House but, given the significance of the collection and the BAC grant which it had already been awarded, the collection needed to be salvaged. Staff immediately began working to save the materials, and to ensure that they could be safely added to the holdings at Falkirk Archive as planned.

Figure 6: Another item from the worst affected section of the collection, this time showing the extent of the mould damage to materials. Due to the extent of the damage and the resulting fragility of the paper, this series may be permanently restricted from public access.

Figure 7: The collection being moved from its original storage space to a quarantine site. Black bin liners were used as makeshift airtight bags to try and prevent insects and mould spores escaping.

The collection was initially moved to Falkirk Town Hall theatre under preservation quarantine on 16/10/19, whilst Archive staff made plans for how to move forward with such a dangerously compromised collection. We spent some time researching archive best practice in handling these types of infestation, and consulting with the wider archiving community for assistance, expertise and past examples in how to save the collection. The response from other UK archivists was extremely helpful, and eventually Falkirk Archives was able to form a plan which would suit both the combination of pest problems, the collection size, and the limited conservation budget of a local authority archive. QUARANTINING > AIR DRYING > MANUALLY CLEANING > CONSERVATION FREEZING Initially, the framed pictures from the collection were removed from their bulky frames, partly due to how the items will be stored in the archive, but also because many of the pictures and frames were visibly affected by mould growth, so removing the frames was essential for thorough cleaning. The appropriate conservation, PPE and cleaning materials (a specialised archive/museum vacuum cleaner along with face masks with HEPA breathing filters) were then acquired by the archive, so that Falkirk Archives staff could clean collection items manually. The items affected by mould were then air-dried, gently brushed free of mould, vacuumed with a HEPA filter museum vacuum, and had all potentially damaging fastenings (such as paper clips and tape) removed.

Figure 8: Evidence of mould on the framed pictured from the collection. These frames were removed before the collection was sent to NMS Conservation Studio.

Figure 9: Leather bound ledgers being allowed to air dry during conservation treatment. This was taken before we had realised the extent of the insect infestation hidden within the ledgers’ spines, which lead us to removing these beautiful leather bindings completely.

Figure 10: While the preservation of materials was clearly important, the health and safety of Falkirk Archives staff who were working on the materials was still the highest priority. Black mould can cause series health problems when inhaled, so staff needed to wear full PPE and clean surfaces thoroughly with ethanol after working on items.

Unfortunately, the leather bindings of the board meeting minutes ledgers were some of the parts of the collection worst affected by insects. Unchecked in their gloomy storeroom, some form of larvae had taken up residence in the books’ spines. To save the unique meeting minutes inside, the decision was made to separate the interior pages and destroy these bindings.

Figure 11: Evidence of insects within the spines of leather ledgers. The black dots are years’ worth of insect excrement.

After this initial cleaning, the bulk of the collection was subsequently sent to NMS Conservation Services on 05/12/19 where it underwent a conservation freezing treatment – a process in which materials are stored in temperatures of -30°C for 72 hours - ensuring that any remaining pests, eggs, and mould on the items were killed. The collection was finally moved to Falkirk Archives in Callendar House in December 2019, ready for cataloguing and rehousing. Given the extent of the conservation issues of this collection, it is extremely fortunate that the BACS grant, and the conservation efforts of Falkirk Archives, came when they did. If these materials had been left for a further 16 years, many items might have been damaged beyond the point where they could ever be used by researchers. Indeed, one series within the collection (FFC/CA/2) was in fact so severely damaged by mould, water and rust that public access to the materials is expected to be permanently restricted, both as a health and safety concern but also due to the fragility of the items after such extensive water and mould damage. It was initially assumed that these items would have to be destroyed altogether, but given the precautions taken to conserve materials, and the unique content of these items, Falkirk Archive staff took the decision to retain the severely damaged articles and reassess their condition and access in future.

2. Cataloguing As this was the largest single sports collection (and the only sizeable business collection related to sport) held by Falkirk Archives, in order to determine an appropriate organisation for the collection, the Falkirk Archivist and I began contacting other Scottish football archive and museum repositories to get an idea of audiences, how similar sports collections are used by researchers, as well as how this type of business operates internally. This included a visit to the Scottish Football Museum in Glasgow and meetings with Falkirk F.C. researchers, and the museum curator and volunteer who had previously created the Falkirk F.C. exhibition at Callendar House.

BOX LISTING As the material was not listed at all when it was donated to Falkirk Archives, during the conservation phase of this project an initial Excel spreadsheet box-list was created, itemising the materials in their found order (though not yet to item level). As the large bulk of the collection was photographs, largely of matches or of the whole team, large series of drawings and photographs were initially grouped together for ease in establishing a complete list. Listing information on item/file type, as specific a date as was initially evident, and a brief description, as well as notes on conservation work applied to individual items. Items were also assigned a temporary reference number in their current order, recorded in the list spreadsheet, to facilitate reorganising of items into their final position in the catalogue later. This list gave a clear picture of the collection’s contents, any obvious pre-existing structures and groups of items, or whether retaining the original order of the materials would contribute at all to the value or understanding of the collection. With an initial appraisal, the original order of collection materials was not, in this instance, deemed a helpful order for the collection. Items had seemingly been put into storage with little maintenance of original use – disparate parts of the collection had been stored in plastic containers simply for conservation of space and ease of transportation. While the collection had little evident structure in its found state, beyond similar item types (i.e. similar ledgers, photograph series, drawings), groups, categories and series of items immediately became apparent. Having a detailed list of the collection materials gave me a full comprehension of its actual size and contents in order to arrange the materials and establish a hierarchy for cataloguing. With a thorough understanding of the types and extent of materials held in the collection, possible structures for organising the collection were able to be devised following this box-listing phase.

ESTABLISHING A CATALOGUE HIERARCHY, REFERENCE NUMBERS AND ITEM ORDER Though other materials relating to Falkirk F.C. were already held by the archive and grouped under the fonds level reference ‘A285/F2; Falkirk Football & Athletic Club records’, this consisted of only a small number of items from disparate collections which had only been intellectually grouped under this ‘collection’ by their association to Falkirk F.C. These materials were individually donated items largely made up of ephemera not created by FFC (posters, programmes, fanzines, etc.). This ‘collection’ did not have any sort of internal hierarchy, intellectual groupings, or order, and the items within it remained physically parts of other collections.

Given this and its lump donation as a single accession, it was consistent with the current archiving system to keep the Falkirk Football and Athletic Club business materials as a distinct collection (accession A2507 / ‘FFC’), though still intellectually grouped under the ‘A285/F2’ fonds within our content management system (CMS) database, Vernon. The decision was taken to use immediately recognisable archive reference ‘FFC’ for the collection, and alphanumeric series codes, allowing the hierarchy of the collection and item location to be immediately recognisable. After also establishing that there were materials present for two distinct business entities (‘Falkirk Football and Athletic Club Ltd.’ and the ‘Brockville Development Association’), but not wanting to divorce the BDA collection from its found state and accession within the FFC business collection, the structure of the catalogue hierarchy was split into another distinct sub- collection under the higher level FFC denomination (FFC > BDA). As mentioned, any coherent original order in the collection was largely lost, as it had been moved and stored for some time after its parts’ creation. Influenced by this as well as by my visit to the Scottish Football Museum and conversations with FFC researchers, it was decided to use a more functional analysis to reorganise the collection into an order which would more fully illustrate business areas of FFC based on item types, creation, purpose and use. This was determined to be the most straightforward and accessible organisation for the materials in the collection, which would allow researchers to view similar items types or functions in proximity in the collection. In establishing the hierarchy for materials within the FFC collection, I began with breaking this down to series level using a generic model for a business archive collection.1 Tailoring this to the business areas evident in the structure of Falkirk F.C. and evident within the collection materials gave my final series groupings. The final breakdown of business areas (and therefore, series) established was as below;

FFC - FALKIRK FOOTBALL AND ATHLETIC CLUB CA – Corporate and Administrative SH - Shareholding F – Financial LP – Legal and Premises OP - Operational M - Marketing

BDA - BROCKVILLE DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION CA – Corporate and Administrative F - Financial LP – Legal and Premises OP - Operational S – Staff M – Marketing

1 Alison Turton, The International Business Archives Handbook: Understanding and Managing the Historical Records of Business (Routledge, 2017), pp. 174–248.

From the starting point of these higher-level series, I was able to reorganise the item level box- list which I had previously made, moving items or series from the largely random original order into their functionally relevant series (initially only on the catalogue spreadsheet, rather than physically moving into series). Items were at this stage still in no particular order within their series, but now fell under series according to their use by the club. After establishing the total number and type of items within series this way, where necessary each of these series were then tentatively broken down into more specific file groups based on the purposes, types, or contents of items from the collection (or sub-series then file groups where more distinction was needed between item types). For example, breaking ‘Financial Records (FFC/F) down into the sub-series Accounts, Gate Receipts and Expenses, Payroll, Profit and Loss Accounts, and Season Tickets sub-series (FFC/F/1-5), and dividing the sub-series Photographs (FFC/M/1) into files including ‘Team Photographs’, ‘1997 Scottish Cup Final’, and ‘Match Photographs’ (FFC/M/1/1-3), both taking into account the nature of items and predicting future researchers’ area of interest and use of the collection (see Appendix 3 for full hierarchy). Once again, physical items have not yet been moved and the order within these was not yet fixed to allow for changes to be made should this be deemed necessary upon more detailed item analysis.

DETAILED DESCRIPTIONS Once grouped and split into intellectually coherent series, sub-series, and files where necessary, I began re-examining each item within their new context of this hierarchy, conducting a detailed analysis of each individual item in turn. This allowed me to comprehensively establish more detailed metadata for each item; precise dates of production (especially for undated items, like photographs), item creators, subject and association information (person, subject, and place, including identifying individuals within photographs), along with access and copyright metadata. This information was also added to the spreadsheet, filling out the catalogue’s metadata fields, as well as helping me to finalise lower hierarchy levels and whether items were in the correct location within the hierarchy. I also spent a considerable amount of time researching individuals, teams, businesses etc. which were featured in or associated with items in the collection for use in person biographies, administrative histories and other descriptions within the catalogue. Materials were then organised by date at the item level (deemed the most accessible order and most useful for future researchers). With this, I was able to finalise the hierarchy, order, and therefore reference numbers for the collection. This hierarchy and order, initially only applied to the individual item entries in the spreadsheet list, was then put into place for the physical items in the collection which had been numbered earlier for this purpose. Reorganising of the items was relatively straightforward at this stage, following the makeshift, found order reference numbers I had assigned items, and using the reorganised spreadsheet as a guide. Items were rehoused in archive packaging, numbered within their reference number, and boxed ready for storage. Once series, sub-series and files were complete and physically grouped, I was able to begin completing in-depth entries for higher level metadata for the collection – finalised scope and content, extent and medium, creators etc. ISAD(G) is explicit regarding cataloguers describing a collection’s the materials to an appropriate level of detail, in order to best inform researchers viewing catalogue entries what

the items are and if they may be relevant for their research, and not repeating at item level what applies at a higher level of the catalogue. While I was attempting to avoid repeating information unnecessarily, as most catalogues are now accessed online (as this one was to be) you do not know that a researcher who finds a description of a specific file will necessarily read the descriptions at higher levels of the hierarchy. Therefore, some repetition of essential contextual information can be helpful. This involved including information such as associated people, places and subjects, copyright and access notes, links to related items and more.

Figure 12: A screenshot of the Excel spreadsheet catalogue, showing a sample of catalogue data and hierarchy before import to Vernon.

Figure 13: A screenshot of the back end of the catalogue being programmed into Vernon CMS.

With item level and higher-level descriptions completed and added to the relevant section of the spreadsheet, I then spent several days redrafting this catalogue, ensuring that all fields were accurately completed, coherent, consistent, adhered to ISAD(G) cataloguing, and Vernon required fields, as well as following naming conventions for people, places, and businesses.

DIGITAL CATALOGUE The final stage of creating the catalogue involved importing the catalogue description entries from the Excel spreadsheet I had been working with onto Vernon. This database connects to the Falkirk Archive and Museum’s online browser, allowing members of the public to search the catalogue and see the item entries with full descriptions. As I had already made sure that my spreadsheet included all relevant Vernon fields I was aware of, for the most part this was a smooth import. However, it was made more complicated and drawn out by my having to enter all entries with multiple associated objects, individuals, businesses, football teams etc., location data and various authority records (predominantly football players and teams) manually as these were unable to import through Excel as was.

Figure 14: An image of the catalogue import process from Excel to Vernon.

3. Covid-19 The project was also complicated at this stage by the onset of nation Covid-19 lockdowns, Callendar House being closed, and staff being forced to work from home. While I was eventually able to remotely access Falkirk Archives’ computers and Vernon database, being unable to access the actual FFC collection meant that final checks of the collection before publishing the catalogue could not be performed. While this delay was initially thought to only last a total of three weeks, the closure lasted a total of 14 months.

Fortunately, the collection had been completely rehoused already, so there were no issues with safety of the collection itself (besides those associated with staffing of the archive being reduced to vital checks only). Since returning to Callendar House in May 2021, the Archivist and I have been working quickly during out Falkirk Archives staffed hours to comprehensively complete this project at last. As of the end of May 2021, the Falkirk F.C. collection is now fully catalogued, boxed, and numbered in Callendar House ready to be used by members of the public.

Outcomes This project has facilitated a number of significant outcomes for a number of stakeholders - both direct and indirect. Direct outcomes include: - 206 item entries plus detailed series level entries (including expanded administrative histories) for Falkirk Football Club and Athletic and the Brockville Development Association (see Appendices 4 and 5). - Addition of over 50 new detailed authority records for associated persons, business, etc. (largely being Falkirk F.C. staff and players, and SFA football teams), along with many more updated authority records. - Creation of the tree structure for the Falkirk F.C. collection, encompassing over 120 years of the club’s history, which consolidates the Falkirk F.C. business processes and allows us to more easily catalogue discrete additions to this collection. - Improved discoverability of Falkirk F.C. by researchers, staff, and other users through the completed online Vernon Catalogue. - Increased staff knowledge of the both the specific club and Scottish football history more widely, along with knowledge of similar businesses related to sport. - Continuing Professional Development for Lucy MacIver, developing cataloguing skills (in particular multi-level cataloguing on Vernon), experience of fixed term cataloguing projects and a growth in confidence and decision making through working on a largely autonomous project. - The Award of this grant has also demonstrated the significance of the club’s legacy to our depositors at Falkirk F.C. – as recognised by both the Archive Service and wider Archive sector. Indirect Outcomes include: - This project has enabled the Service to define many processes that have never previously been consolidated. This includes cataloguing conventions for certain record formats, the approach to Data Protection closures of records due to condition, specifics of large-scale import from Microsoft Excel to Vernon, etc. - The extensive conservation issues faced by staff on this project also enabled Service staff to consolidate procedure for dealing with issues of this nature in future, including quarantining procedure with other Trust venues, and relationship with conservationists. - This project has facilitated the development of a closer working relationship with Falkirk F.C. staff and historian, Michael White, with the potential to result in the deposit of significant further additions to the Falkirk F.C. collection in future. It has been established that more Falkirk F.C. business records exist in private collections of the club’s board. A number of administrative items are unaccounted for (for example,

incomplete run of minutes for the club’s meetings), so we are eager to find these if they have been kept with working materials or held by individuals such as Michael White. - Positive impact on staff morale across the team through the award of external funding and completion of cataloguing work. In a small, busy and user-focused team the sense of achievement this project has given us all is not to be underestimated.

Collection Access and Usage The Archive and search room at Callendar House, Falkirk, is now the permanent home of the Falkirk F.C. collection and welcomes all research visitors. As of this project being completed, Falkirk Archives holds the only publicly accessible Falkirk F.C. collection. The collection along with the research publications related to it are free to use. The archive is open four days each week and appointments can be made by contacting one of the archive team by email or by telephoning the archive. Falkirk Archives also benefits greatly by being situated in the beautiful Callendar House, and so receives drop-in visits from members of the public on chance visits regularly. Falkirk F.C. has always been a local community and family orientated club, so it is fitting that its archival collection has been donated to and made available to the Falkirk people and wider public by donating it to Falkirk Archives. It has always been felt that this collection brings a focus to sections of the Falkirk community which had been largely under-represented within our Service, and so has the potential to invite both new kinds of research and attract new types of researchers from such areas to the archive. Before this collection Falkirk Archives held a number of other items relating to Falkirk F.C., but these are generally piecemeal promotional items and photographs, such as flyers and programs situated within individual’s collections. This larger cohesive collection and the fact that it is the official papers of the club is hoped to encourage private collectors or fans to donate their own contributions to Falkirk Archive to further increase the coverage of the club’s history and connection to the area. While the collection items are now accessible in the archive search-room and the catalogue fully searchable on the Falkirk Archives website, archive staff are continuing to work to add the catalogue to the Archives Hub and Discovery in the near future, as well as working to add digital images of photographs to the collection catalogue so that materials may be viewed and researched across the globe. The collection has already attracted attention and a few enquiries before it has even been catalogued, including; - One Falkirk F.C. fan researching the club’s tour to Israel, using the minute books held within the collection to search for any references to this largely undocumented tour - An enquiry from France regarding the Falkirk F.C. match-fixing scandal - Family history enquiries about individuals who played for Falkirk F.C.

Figure 15: Part of the recently rehoused and catalogued Falkirk F.C. collection ready to find a permanent place within our archive store.

Next Steps The impact of this project in ongoing, Falkirk Archives has further work planned to utilise and augment this important collection in the following areas; - Donor visits are planned to showcase the outcomes of the project to Falkirk F.C. (on hold until relaxation of Covid-19 restrictions). - Continue to work with Falkirk F.C. in producing a promotional video focusing on the club’s archival collection. - In future, it is hoped that digital scans of the photographs from the collection can be created, added to the catalogue, and made available through the Service’s online browser to further increase the public access to these materials. Archive staff are currently looking at the creating volunteering opportunities for digitising photographs from the collection. - Plans to reach out to community groups who may be interested in using the materials, such as the Football Memories project - a product of Alzheimer Scotland’s pioneering work on their Football Reminiscence project. - It is envisioned that the FFC catalogue will be adapted and added to the Archives Hub to further increase its searchability and accessibility to researchers around the world. Limited staffing currently within Falkirk Archives mean that this may not be for some time, however.

Lessons Learned

Even though this collection didn’t contain a huge volume of items, this cataloguing project certainly involved a sizeable effort, primarily in regard to its conservation. It has, through this, taught me important lessons in project management, which only really come from negative experiences.

- Through this experience, with any future projects, I would perform more thorough checks at outset to ensure scope of project known – in particular establishing conservation concerns or similar well in advance. - The importance in having flexibility working on this type of project, both in terms of working hours and the ability to confront unexpected problems and solve these in a creative way, with the flexibility to work around factors like budget and availability of vital services (like transport and conservation). - Ultimately, it was only by good fortune that Falkirk Archives as a local authority archive had both the money for conservation and appropriate transportation available to move materials from Falkirk to the NMS in Edinburgh. Without either of these there is a possibility the project would have needed to be abandoned before it ever reached the cataloguing stage. If I were to undertake this kind of project again for a smaller service with a more limited budget, I would be much more wary in taking on a collection with so many issues. In many ways, the stars aligned for the Falkirk F.C. collection with it being brought to the Falkirk Archivist’s attention when it was, winning the BAC grant, and Falkirk Archives having the resources to properly care for this collection when the extent of the damage was discovered. This fortunate timing has meant that the FFC materials were saved from rotting away and being lost, perhaps just in time.

Appendices

Appendix 1: Project Budget

Budget BAC Grant Income £4,000.00

Expenditure Archive Assistant Project Hours £4,000.00 Archive Assistant Regular Hours (18.75) £206.00 Archivist Hours (35) £660.00 Conservation Treatment £200.00 Conservation Materials / PPE £298.20

Total £5,364.20 Value of Archive Services Contribution £1,364.20 (plus packaging materials)

Appendix 2: Work Plan

Day Date Hours Worked 1 24/09/19 7.50 Project discussion and Work Plan – completed with Paul Choi Reading past project documentation and grant proposal materials Background - notes (for collection level description later) Journal & timesheet to be completed at the end of each session (allow 30 mins) 2 02/10/19 7.50 Meeting with Falkirk Stadium staff and discussion re. moving collection. Viewing collection for first time with Falkirk Archivist Paul Choi at Falkirk Stadium. Apparent conservation issues noted and discussions regarding how to move forward. Organising quarantine area for collection with Falkirk Town Hall theatre staff. Project planning - discussions with Paul Choi regarding the collection and project outcomes, promotional video, social media for the project, conservation, and possibility of including volunteer roles in project. Journal & timesheet to be completed at the end of each session (allow 30 mins). 3 08/10/19 7.50 Researching similar institutions, collections in other repositories Sourcing reference materials for the collection and project Organise visit to Scottish Football Museum with Paul Choi and broach potential for collaboration and assistance with FFC project Meeting with museum volunteer responsible for Falkirk F.C.: A Fan's View exhibition. Background - notes (for collection level description later) Call with FFC staff re. promotional video content / budget 4 16/10/19 7.50 Archivist and Project Archivist meeting with Scottish Football Museum curators in Glasgow Meeting with Paul Choi to discuss museum / archive visit. Discussions regarding collection uses, researcher demographics, possible arrangement for collection materials, Football Memories Project collaboration at sportsheritagescotland.co.uk Arranging uplift and transport of collection through Falkirk Council patrol vehicles 5 30/10/19 7.50 Transport of collection from Falkirk Stadium to Falkirk Town Hall Full assessment of collection conservation issues carried out 6 11/11/19 7.50 Identification of Materials Beginning box list for collection items Deframing pictures and documenting damage to collection Conservation research and outreach to other repositories. Forming full conservation plan for collection Ordering necessary PPE and equipment for in house cleaning and preparation for freezing treatment (PPE suits and masks, museum vac, brushes, cleaning supplies, silicon, sealable bags) Organising freezing treatment appt. with NMS in Edinburgh 7 19/11/19 7.50 Project Archivist and Archivist manually cleaning collection - air drying ledgers, brushing ledgers, removing bindings Adding conservation work and further item details to box list

8 26/11/19 7.50 Project Archivist and Archivist cleaning of collection at Falkirk Town Hall - vacuuming mould and insects on ledgers page by page (found traces of silk webbing, indicating that larvae were in fact webbing moths / clothes moths) Setting up project workspace in Callendar House attic 9 27/11/19 7.50 Project Archivist and Archivist completed manual cleaning of items Finished box list to file / item level Preparing collection items for conservation freezing treatment - padding, bagging in sealed bags, individually labelling, documenting all items being sent, organising transport for collection to Edinburgh 9.5 04/12/19 3.75 Creating a cataloguing template in Excel with all ISAD(G) fields 10 05/12/19 3.75 Packed and transported collection via Falkirk Council patrol vehicles to NMS Conservation services in Edinburgh 11 18/12/19 7.50 Collection returned from NMS Conservation services to Callendar House. Unpacked collection in quarantine work-space in CH, and check over collection items for condition after conservation treatment Project now significantly behind due to unexpected delay from conservation work. Discussions with Paul Choi regarding future project timeline to complete project on time 12 19/12/19 7.50 Cataloguing FFC Adding item level information for collection items Researching and dating individual items 13 06/01/20 7.50 Cataloguing FFC Adding item level information for collection items (pencil sketches and larger framed pictures) Researching and dating individual items 14 09/01/20 7.50 Cataloguing FFC 15 13/01/20 7.50 Cataloguing FFC 16 15/01/20 7.50 Cataloguing FFC Finish item level descriptions 17 20/01/20 7.50 Cataloguing / researching BDA 18 22/01/20 7.50 Cataloguing FFC / BDA Establish collection series (based on business use and functions, see Business Archives Handbook) Higher level descriptions 19 27/01/20 7.50 Creating sub-series and file level divisions for series based on items classed within each series of collection Research for higher level descriptions Research naming conventions Contact club staff and fan Twitter accounts for assistance identifying players, events etc. from within the collection

20 29/01/20 7.50 Standardising names / checking consistency in dates etc Labelling items in preparation for reorganising Project Review/Tree Finalise 21 05/02/20 7.50 Cataloguing Adding access restrictions metadata Copyright and ownership metadata added

22 06/02/20 7.50 Amendments Catalogue corrections and redrafting of descriptions Subject and association metadata (person, place, subject) Related materials Reference numbers finalised 23 13/02/20 7.50 Amendments Measurements of items Collection Level Descriptions – Finalise 24 19/02/20 7.50 Amendments Administrative histories, scope and content for higher levels Adding / adapting to Vernon specific fields to catalogue in preparation of import 25 28/02/20 7.50 Submitted draft to archivist Corrections to first draft catalogue 26 05/03/20 7.50 Physically reorganising collection to new hierarchy and order as per final catalogue order 27 11/03/20 7.50 Labelling and rehousing collection items Shelving and locating collection Adding location data to catalogue 28 12/03/20 7.50 Importing collection catalogue into Vernon database 29 24/03/20 7.50 WORKING FROM HOME Callendar House closed from 18th March 2020 onwards (staff expecting to return after 3 weeks) Project Review following disruption – plan of what work remains, what can feasibly be completed remotely FINAL DECISIONS NEED TO BE MADE, issues concerning finishing the project without access to Callendar House, Archive or collection – meeting with Paul Choi Attempting to gain remote access to archive computers and Vernon database 30 01/04/20 7.50 WORKING FROM HOME Continuing Vernon import - manually adding and amending fields Adding user defined fields (e.g. arrangement, notes, archivist notes) Updating / adding authority terms in Vernon database for businesses and individuals 31 08/04/20 7.50 WORKING FROM HOME Finalising Vernon digital catalogue Beginning documentation for project Drafting scripts for promotional video for Falkirk F.C. Upon Falkirk Archive staff being furloughed decided upon by Archivist to finish project documentation on return to work

32 14/05/21 7.50 Regain access to Callendar House after 14-month closure Minor catalogue amendments following access to collection again Writing project documentation and report to BAC 33 21/05/21 7.50 Continuing to compile project documentation and report for BAC 34 28/05/21 7.50 Finalising project documentation and report to BAC Submitted draft to Archivist for approval 34.5 04/06/21 3.75 Final Day Reports Submitted

Appendix 3: Collection Hierarchy

Vernon Reference Code 3.1.2 Title 3.1.3 Date 3.1.4 Level Next Higher Record in Group 3.1.5 Extent and Medium 3.2.1 Creator(s) Falkirk Football and Athletic Club 1882-2007 Fonds A285/F2; Falkirk Football & 204 items Falkirk Football and A2507 FFC Limited Athletic Club records Athletic Club Limited FFC/CA Corporate and Administrative 1924-2004 Series Falkirk Football and Athletic 13 items Falkirk Football and Club Limited (Fonds) Athletic Club Limited FFC/CA Meetings and Minutes 1924-2004 Sub-series Corporate and Administrative 12 items Falkirk Football and (Series) Athletic Club Limited FFC/CA Minute Books 1924-1978 File Meetings and Minutes (Sub- 9 items Falkirk Football and series) Athletic Club Limited FFC/CA Memorandum and Articles of Late 20th C. File Corporate and Administrative 1 item Falkirk Football and Association (Series) Athletic Club Limited FFC/CA Chairman's Papers 2001-2005 Sub-series Corporate and Administrative 3 files Falkirk Football and (Series) Athletic Club Limited FFC/CA Campbell Christie 2002-2004 File Chairman's Papers (Sub- 3 files Campbell Christie series) FFC/SH Shareholding Early 20th C. Series Falkirk Football and Athletic 1 item Falkirk Football and Club Limited (Fonds) Athletic Club Limited FFC/F Financial Records 1949-1991 Series Falkirk Football and Athletic 10 items Falkirk Football and Club Limited (Fonds) Athletic Club Limited FFC/F Accounts 1949-1991 Sub-series Financial (Series) 3 items Falkirk Football and Athletic Club Limited FFC/F Gate receipts and Expenses 1952-1959 Sub-series Financial (Series) 2 items Falkirk Football and Athletic Club Limited FFC/F Payroll 1949-1982 Sub-series Financial (Series) 2 items Falkirk Football and Athletic Club Limited FFC/F Profit and Loss Accounts 1954-1955 Sub-series Financial (Series) 2 items Falkirk Football and Athletic Club Limited FFC/F Season Tickets 1950-1956 Sub-series Financial (Series) 1 item Falkirk Football and Athletic Club Limited FFC/LP Legal And Premises 1930s-2000 Series Falkirk Football and Athletic 3 items Falkirk Football and Club Limited (Fonds) Athletic Club Limited FFC/LP Brockville Park 1930s-1994 Sub-series Legal And Premises (Series) 2 items Falkirk Football and Athletic Club Limited FFC/LP Falkirk Stadium 2000 Sub-series Legal And Premises (Series) 1 item Falkirk Football and Athletic Club Limited FFC/O Operational Records 1996-2007 Series Falkirk Football and Athletic 2 files Falkirk Football and Club Limited (Fonds) Athletic Club Limited FFC/O SFA Youth Initiative materials 2004-2007 File Operational (Series) 1 file (ring binder) Falkirk Football and Athletic Club Limited FFC/O Certificates 1996-1997 File Operational (Series) 2 items Falkirk Football and Athletic Club Limited FFC/M Marketing 1882-2000s Series Falkirk Football and Athletic 150 items Falkirk Football and Club Limited (Fonds) Athletic Club Limited FFC/M Prints 1988 File Marketing (Series) 2 items Falkirk Football and Athletic Club Limited FFC/M Press Cuttings 1913-1914 File Marketing (Series) 2 items Falkirk Football and Athletic Club Limited FFC/M Miscellaneous Marketing (Series) Falkirk Football and 1957-2000s File 3 items Athletic Club Limited FFC/M Photographs 1882-2000s Sub-series Marketing (Series) 114 items Falkirk Football and Athletic Club Limited FFC/M Team Pictures 1882-2000s File Photographs (Sub-series) 39 items Falkirk Football and Athletic Club Limited FFC/M 1997 Scottish Cup Final 1997 File Photographs (Sub-series) 14 items Falkirk Football and Athletic Club Limited FFC/M Match Photographs 1957-2003 File Photographs (Sub-series) 52 items Falkirk Football and Athletic Club Limited FFC/M Miscellaneous Photographs 1950s-2000 File Photographs (Sub-series) 10 items Falkirk Football and Athletic Club Limited FFC/M Drawings late 20th C. - Sub-series Marketing (Series) 29 items Falkirk Football and early 2000s Athletic Club Limited FFC/M Hall of Fame Sketches Early 2000s File Drawings (Sub-series) 25 items Genuine European Portraits

FFC/BD Brockville Development 1949-1973 Sub-Fonds Falkirk Football and Athletic 26 items Brockville Development Association Club Limited (Fonds) Association FFC/BD/CA Corporate and Administrative 1964-1973 Series Brockville Development 9 items Brockville Development Association (Sub-fonds) Association FFC/BD/F Financial 1970-1973 Series Brockville Development 18 items Brockville Development Association (Sub-fonds) Association FFC/BD/LP Legal and Premises 1972-1973 Series Brockville Development 5 items Brockville Development Association (Sub-fonds) Association FFC/BD/LP/1 H. Rolland and Associates 1972-1973 File Legal and Premises (Series) 3 items FFC/BD/LP/2 Correspondence 1972 File Legal and Premises (Series) 2 items FFC/BD/O Operational 1973 Series Brockville Development 1 item Brockville Development Association (Sub-fonds) Association FFC/BD/S Staff 1949 Series Brockville Development 1 item Brockville Development Association (Sub-fonds) Association FFC/BD/M Marketing Mid 20th C. Series Brockville Development 1 item Brockville Development Association (Sub-fonds) Association

Hierarchy tree in Vernon CMS:

Appendix 4: Collection level description

Appendix 5: Example of Vernon Descriptions

Example of series level description:

Example of item level description, with association data and new Person Identity Authority entry in Vernon:

Example of new individual person authority record added to collection from the front end (public access):