On Impartiality and Interrelatedness: Reactions to Jenkinsonian Appraisal in the Twentieth Century

Abstract

This article deconstructs Sir Hilary Jenkinson's arguments in support of archival characteristics that determine record value and inform appraisal theory-especially interrelatedness and impartiality- A nd analyzes critics' arguments, such as those of T. R. Schellenberg, W. Kaye Lamb, F. Gerald Ham, and Hans Booms. In the process, these reactions to Jenkinsonian appraisal are assessed for relevance against Jenkinson's original arguments. The article concludes that, in the conflicted space between Jenkinson's refusal to allow archivists to engage in licit appraisal activities and his critics, fruitful conditions have been created for development of appraisal solutions.