The Archive has only accepted the papers of Caians since the early 1990s. Before that, personal papers were usually offered to the College Library. Papers have only been accepted if they were felt to contain a substantial quantity of college-related information; or, if the College has been felt to be the most appropriate repository for their storage and documentation.
Given the nature of College administration, where Fellows take on roles as officers with particular administrative tasks, the distinction between an official College record and a private filing system can sometimes be blurred. In the case of some committees, or the officers who do not receive secretarial/office support, the 'private' record may be the only surviving record of College business. Where possible, the filing systems of College officers have been classified as part of the official College archive (e.g. Sturdy and Tranchell papers). However, in cases where a Fellow has held more than one office, but has maintained an undifferentiated filing system, it has proved more appropriate to maintain original order and identify the files by person (e.g. Prichard papers). A distinction has also been made in cases where the official file series have already been transferred to the Archive, but supplementary migrant records have been added by personal gift from private record series (e.g. Needham papers are kept distinct from magisterial records).
