Here are some answers to the most frequently asked questions related to archives. An archives is supposed to contain only material of corporate origin, documents that are produced during the course of business. A collection of letters, diaries, and the like is not, technically speaking, an archives. It is, rather, a manuscript collection. An archivist is the person who decides what to save and what to throw away.
Archivists also answer questions and provide for the physical preservation of documents.
If you believe that what happened to you yesterday, or last week, or last year, is important then you understand why an archives is important. Archives preserve the past. By preserving evidence. A rational being is one who requires evidence to believe or understand. Archives preserve evidence so that we, as a society, may understand what has happened in the past.