![Collection Storage for SI Archives in Capital Gallery, 2008, Smithsonian Archives - History Div, SIA-1024x76 and CapGalStocks. Collection Storage for SI Archives in Capital Gallery](https://ids.si.edu/ids/deliveryService?id=https://siarchives.si.edu/sites/default/files/pdfs/temp_siris/SIA-1024x768.jpg&max_h=200)
![Archives Office, Smithsonian Institution Building, by Unknown, c. 1897, Smithsonian Archives - History Div, 2003-9567. Archives Office, Smithsonian Institution Building](https://ids.si.edu/ids/iiif/SIA-2003-19567/full/full/0/default.jpg)
![Old Archives Area, Fourth Floor, Smithsonian Institution Building, Photo 1 of 11, by Unknown, February 1970, Smithsonian Archives - History Div, SIA2011-1082 and SA-800. Old Archives Area, Fourth Floor, Smithsonian Institution Building, Photo 1 of 11](https://ids.si.edu/ids/iiif/SIA-SIA2011-1082/full/full/0/default.jpg)
![Reading room of the Smithsonian Institution Archives in the Arts and Industries Buildings, by Unknown, November 1, 2004, Smithsonian Archives - History Div, refererencerm1nov04. Reading room of the Smithsonian Institution Archives in the Arts and Industries Buildings](https://ids.si.edu/ids/deliveryService?id=https://siarchives.si.edu/sites/default/files/pdfs/temp_siris/referencerm1nov04.jpg&max_h=200)
![Floor Plan for East Wing, SIB, by Unknown, c. 1890, Smithsonian Archives - History Div, 60247-G or MAH-60247G. Floor Plan for East Wing, SIB](https://ids.si.edu/ids/iiif/SIA-MAH-60247G/full/300,/0/default.jpg)
![Old Archives Office, Smithsonian Institution Building, by Unknown, 1897, Smithsonian Archives - History Div, 13406 or MAH-13406. Old Archives Office, Smithsonian Institution Building](https://ids.si.edu/ids/iiif/SIA-MAH-13406/full/180,/0/default.jpg)
![Old Archives Area, Fourth Floor, Smithsonian Institution Building, Photo 1 of 11, by Unknown, February 1970, Smithsonian Archives - History Div, SIA2011-1082 and SA-800. Old Archives Area, Fourth Floor, Smithsonian Institution Building, Photo 1 of 11](https://ids.si.edu/ids/iiif/SIA-SIA2011-1082/full/180,/0/default.jpg)
Highlights from the 1980s include the relocation and expansion of the Archives, a survey of photographic resources across the Institution, and the creation of the Smithsonian Videohistory program in 1987. The Videohistory Program continues to document the Smithsonian’s involvement in American science through videotaped interviews. By the late eighties, the Archives' space in the Arts and Industries Building had been completely filled. As a result, in 1988 the Archives leased around six thousand square feet of warehouse space in Virginia. Over five thousand cubic feet of records were initially transferred to the new facility from Arts and Industries.
![Reading room of the Smithsonian Institution Archives in the Arts and Industries Buildings, by Unknown, November 1, 2004, Smithsonian Archives - History Div, refererencerm1nov04. Reading room of the Smithsonian Institution Archives in the Arts and Industries Buildings](https://ids.si.edu/ids/deliveryService?id=https://siarchives.si.edu/sites/default/files/pdfs/temp_siris/referencerm1nov04.jpg&max_w=180)
![Nate Reingold in his office at JHPP, by Tinsley, Jeffrey Wayne 1947-2017, 1985, Smithsonian Archives - History Div, 85-13061-21A. Nate Reingold in his office at JHPP](https://ids.si.edu/ids/iiif/SIA-85-13061-21A_temp/full/180,/0/default.jpg)
In 2003, the Smithsonian Center for Archives Conservation, initially funded by an endowment, was created to make conservation services available to all Smithsonian repositories. A formal Electronic Records Program was established in 2004, dedicated to the management and preservation of the Institution’s digital history.
The Institutional History Division made specialized databases of historical information and five thousand images available online through the Smithsonian Institution Research and Information Service, in addition to launching a combined history of the Smithsonian on the web.
![John Dillaber in the Lab, by Cross, Anthony, July 15, 2005, Smithsonian Archives - History Div, 2005-22778. John Dillaber in the Lab](https://ids.si.edu/ids/iiif/SIA-2005-22778/full/180,/0/default.jpg)
Today the Archives holds some 5,096 collections comprising 35,161 cubic feet of archival documentation, as well as extensive digital resources.
Further Exploration
- Chronology of the Smithsonian Institution Archives
- Bibliography of the Smithsonian Institution Archives
- Historic Images of the Smithsonian Institution Archives
Related Collections
- Smithsonian Institution Archives Records from the Smithsonian Institution Archives
- Additional Records and Collections of the Smithsonian Institution Archives Across the Smithsonian
Other Resources
- Smithsonian Institution Archives Blog, THE BIGGER PICTURE.
- Learn More about Our Current Programs and Staff