Saving America's Paper Treasures

Featured from The Papermaker, the Newsletter of Historic RittenhouseTown
Volume 16, Number 1

Since the first manufacture of paper at RittenhouseTown in 1690, it continues to play an important role in our lives despite those who thought it would be virtually eliminated by the introduction of computers. However, as examples of the type of paper produced at RittenhouseTown, in such items as books and editions of Philadelphia's American Weekly Mercury, remain as strong and durable as the day they were first made, due to their natural linen or cotton content, other historic paper is disintegrating all around us. More than 150 year ago, papermakers started using chemicals that made their product acidic and the problem was made worse with the introduction of the very abundant supply of wood pulp rather than recycling old rags.

It was reported in the January 2, 2002 edition of the Philadelphia Inquirer (Saving Books from Certain Death by Acid by Associated Press Reporter Carl Hartman) that the United States Library of Congress, home to the world's biggest collection of books, is working to preserve millions of them by removing the acid from the paper. According to Kenneth Harris, the library's director of preservation projects, there is a 30- year plan to deacidify about 8.5 million of the total collection of 18.7 million books. A five-year contract with the library was begun by a Pittsburgh firm to treat, over the next twelve months, 150,000 books at a cost of $2.3 million. This firm has already treated 400,000 works for the library with a goal of processing 250,000 works annually by the end of 2005. This mass deacidification has primarily focused on Americana- books and other materials dealing with the history of the United States.

This delicate process for books involves using special cylindrical vats each able to hold four works spine-to-spine on two circular shelves. This way, the books have room to completely open and a deacidifying liquid can be applied to each page. The liquid contains particles of magnesium oxide, described by Harris as "like Milk of Magnesia" due to its chalky white appearance, and leaves a residue to continue the process. Following 25 minutes, the liquid is vacuumed out and within two hours the books are dry enough to be shipped back to the Library of Congress. This process literally adds hundreds of years of useful life to paper that would have otherwise crumbled to dust. Perhaps, we should have never changed from the type of paper produced by William Rittenhouse and his fellow papermakers, which would have saved society all of this trouble and expense.

The Papermaker is the quarterly newsletter of Historic RittenhouseTown and is sent to all members.