National archives are widely understood as records of a country’s history, culture, and government activities. Though we hold ideals that these collections will be complete, neutral, and available to anyone who has an interest in them, this is rarely the case. Both national governments, and the archivists employed by them, influence the archives with their own political and cultural agendas, both on purpose and unintentionally. Examples of these occurrences are documented in Archive Stories: Facts, Fictions, and the Writing of History, a recent collection of essays by historians with experience working in national archives from around the world. The “Historians Workshop” course at the University of Richmond studied these “archive stories” alongside two UR historians who visited our class and shared their own experiences: Dr. Manuela Meyer, a historian of Brazil, and Dr. David Brandenberger, a Soviet historian. Their stories raise an important question: In what ways do national governments and archivists affect the neutrality and accessibility of national archives? Continue reading →