Your old letters, diaries, Bibles and photographs are your family's history,
and time is their enemy. Paper is biodegradable--a process you
want to impede if your grandchildren are going to enjoy these documents.
Fortunately, thanks to the popularity of scrapbooking, materials
to safeguard these documents are easy to find.
Instructions
• STEP 1: Store important papers and books in acid-free, archival-safe boxes or binders. If you use binders, put each document in a polypropylene sheet protector so that you can handle it safely. Make sure any notes and papers you store with the documents are also acid-free. Acids in regular paper and cardboard cause paper to deteriorate.
• STEP 2: Store newspaper clippings separately from other types of documents as they are highly acidic. Put them in polypropylene protectors laid flat in archival boxes. Make copies of or scan in newspaper clippings because newsprint deteriorates quickly.
• STEP 3: Store photographs in acid-free, archival-quality boxes in a dark, dry, cool place. They can also be put in albums as long as they are also acid-free and of archival quality.
• STEP 4: Make a master list of what is in each box so that you don't have to open them (and handle the documents) to find out.
Overall Tips & Warnings
• Handle old papers as little as possible.
• Clearly label and number your boxes and binders

http://www.ehow.com/how_134750_archive-family-records.html

Charging in on your subject again....sorry.

Bear in mind, if you make zerox black and white copies of pictures or especially newspaper clippings...in just a couple of years...they will turn completely black and you will have nothing....
If you have to do B&W...go home and transcribe it immediately, and scan it into your computer as well..
Best to do color copies...even if it is a newspaper or magazine. I don't know how long they last yet....but the color copies I made 10 years ago still look like they did the day I made them. The zerox copies are totally black and they have been since about 2 years after I made them. You are probably not going to have a lot of choice if you are making copies in a library....so do something the second you get home.
I don't think the copies you make from microfilm machines are a lot better....but I do have some of those that i have had for 20 years or so and I can still read them.

Steph

Nope You did not barge in, I wanted people to add there tips here. I personally always keep 2 sets of files one I have hand written , when I am searching for something and the pc is not handy, then the other I later type up. I can tell a lot by "How' I wrote the info on the page. Such as I found " Joe Black" in the margin I may have wrote, it says he is also related to wilma jones.