Introduction to our archive assistants!

Falkirk Archives has two archives assistant on staff currently, so we thought we should write a bit about ourselves and our work. In a few days we will post our second archive assistant's introduction.

Hi! My name is Maayan, and I’m one of the Archives Assistants for Falkirk Archives. My day to day duties include answering enquiries (both in person, or through the phone/email), accessioning and cataloguing new collections, and general daily maintenance of all our archive storage rooms – although honestly, ever

I didn’t always intend on working in the archives sector. I’ve done my BA double-majoring in Archaeology and American Studies in Tel-Aviv University, and my MA in Queer History in Goldsmiths College. During my studies, I’ve used archives many times for research, but it was only after I have finished my MA that I thought of looking into volunteering in this field.

In November of 2018 I started volunteering with the Glasgow Zine Library, which had just started operating. The following year, I also spent a few months volunteering with the Ballast Trust. Both organizations gave me incredible experience in cataloguing, digitisation, customer service, and social media engagement. All of those have proven invaluable for the work I do in Falkirk Archives.

While it was not my intended trajectory, I am beyond happy I’ve made it into the archives sector. I am a firm believer that heritage and history should not only be accessible to the wider public, but should also reflect communities and people that have historically been dismissed and erased. By extending Falkirk Archives’ social media presence, both through our twitter account and now this blog, we can share our work cataloguing and archiving records related to the history of the Falkirk district.