Skip to main content
Records Authority
Category: Archival Management

Historical Value

Also known as: Historic Value
Simply put

Historical value is the worth a record holds because of what it can tell us about past events, people, or activities. Records with historical value are often kept longer than their routine business use would otherwise require, sometimes permanently, because they hold enduring significance. It is one of several types of value that may justify retaining records beyond their immediate operational need.

Formal definition

In recordkeeping and archival appraisal, historical value refers to the quality or content of a record that warrants its retention for purposes of history, typically extending its retention period beyond that dictated by administrative, legal, or fiscal requirements. It is commonly treated as one of several categories of value that may attach to records and inform disposition decisions, potentially supporting longer retention or permanent preservation rather than destruction. Historical value should not be conflated with the everyday sense of increased worth from age (as in artifacts or antiques) or with accounting concepts such as historical cost on a balance sheet; the archival meaning concerns the evidential and informational significance of a record for understanding the past. The determination of historical value is a matter of professional appraisal judgment and typically varies according to organizational policy, jurisdiction, and applicable retention schedules.

Why it matters

Historical value is one of the principal justifications for retaining records beyond the point at which their administrative, legal, or fiscal usefulness has ended. Because most records are created to serve an immediate business purpose, appraisal decisions must identify the comparatively small proportion whose evidential or informational significance for understanding the past warrants longer, and sometimes permanent, retention. Recognizing historical value is therefore central to distinguishing records destined for eventual destruction from those that should be transferred to archival custody or preserved indefinitely.

Getting this determination right matters because both over-retention and premature destruction carry costs. Retaining everything on the assumption that it might one day prove historically significant imposes storage and management burdens and can undermine the disciplined operation of a retention schedule; destroying records that in fact hold enduring significance results in an irreversible loss to the historical record. Because historical value rests on professional appraisal judgment rather than a fixed formula, and because that judgment typically varies according to organizational policy, jurisdiction, and the applicable retention schedule, decisions in this area often benefit from documented criteria and archival expertise.

A common source of confusion is worth noting: the archival sense of historical value should not be conflated with the everyday notion that an object gains worth simply through aging, as with antiques or artifacts, nor with the accounting concept of historical cost recorded on a balance sheet. In recordkeeping the term concerns what a record can tell us about past events, people, or activities, not its market price or age-related monetary value.

Who it's relevant to

Archivists
Archivists apply appraisal judgment to identify records whose evidential or informational significance for understanding the past warrants transfer to archival custody or permanent preservation. Historical value is often a decisive criterion in distinguishing records worth keeping indefinitely from those that may be destroyed once their operational usefulness ends.
Records Managers
Records managers incorporate historical value into retention schedules and disposition decisions, treating it as one of several categories of value that may justify retaining records beyond their immediate business need. Balancing this against administrative, legal, and fiscal considerations helps ensure that schedules neither over-retain nor prematurely destroy records of enduring significance.
Information Governance Officers
Those responsible for the broader governance framework rely on clear criteria for historical value to support defensible, consistently applied disposition policies. Because the determination varies according to organizational policy and jurisdiction, documenting how historical value is assessed contributes to accountability across the wider information landscape.
Government and Public Sector Recordkeepers
In many public sector contexts, such as local government, historical value appears explicitly in retention guidance as one of the categorical values that may indicate a need to retain records longer. Practitioners in these settings apply it in accordance with applicable schedules and jurisdictional requirements, which can differ from one regime to another.

Inside Historical Value

Evidential value
The worth of a record in documenting the origins, functions, structure, and significant activities of the organization or individual that created it. Records with evidential value help explain how and why an entity operated, and are typically assessed as part of determining whether records warrant permanent preservation.
Informational value
The worth of a record for the information it contains about persons, places, events, subjects, or phenomena, independent of its role as evidence of the creator's activities. Informational value is often relevant to research use and may support retention beyond immediate business need, depending on appraisal policy.
Appraisal context
Historical value is generally established through appraisal, the process by which records are evaluated to determine their continuing worth and appropriate disposition. Appraisal considers administrative, legal, fiscal, evidential, and informational factors, and outcomes depend on organizational policy and, in many jurisdictions, national archives guidance.
Relationship to permanent preservation
Records judged to have enduring historical value are typically designated for permanent preservation or transfer to an archival authority as a disposition outcome, rather than destruction. Historical value is one basis for such a designation, distinct from retention driven by ongoing business, legal, or regulatory requirements.
Enduring significance over time
Historical value refers to worth that persists after a record's primary administrative or operational use has ended. It is assessed with reference to long-term research, accountability, and cultural or organizational memory, rather than short-term transactional need.

Common questions

Answers to the questions practitioners most commonly ask about Historical Value.

Does historical value mean the same thing as archival value?
Not exactly, though the terms are often used loosely and overlap in practice. Historical value typically refers to the enduring worth a record holds for understanding past events, activities, decisions, or context beyond its original administrative or operational purpose. Archival value is a broader concept often used to describe the combined enduring values (which may include evidential, informational, and historical dimensions) that justify a record's permanent preservation. In many appraisal frameworks, historical value is treated as one contributing factor within the wider assessment of archival value rather than a synonym for it. The precise relationship depends on the appraisal methodology and terminology adopted by a given organization or archival authority.
If a record has historical value, does that automatically mean it should be kept permanently?
Not necessarily. Identifying historical value is part of appraisal, but a decision to retain permanently typically depends on weighing that value against other factors, including the record's evidential and informational qualities, the cost and feasibility of ongoing preservation, duplication across holdings, and applicable retention and disposition policies. In many jurisdictions and organizations, records assessed as having enduring historical value are designated for transfer to an archive or for permanent preservation, but this is an outcome of a documented appraisal and disposition process rather than an automatic consequence of the value itself. Disposition may also involve options other than permanent retention, depending on organizational policy and jurisdictional requirements.
How is historical value typically assessed during appraisal?
Assessment of historical value generally forms part of a structured appraisal process in which records are evaluated against defined criteria. These criteria often consider the record's capacity to document significant activities, decisions, or events, its relationship to the functions and context of the creating body, and its potential usefulness to future research or accountability. Practices vary by organization and by archival authority, and appraisal is usually carried out or overseen by records and archives professionals working within a documented methodology. Decisions and their rationale are typically recorded to support transparency and defensibility.
Who is usually responsible for determining whether a record has historical value?
Responsibility commonly rests with records managers, archivists, or appraisal specialists, often working in consultation with business units that understand the operational context of the records and, where relevant, with governance, legal, or compliance functions. In some settings, particularly the public sector, a national or organizational archival authority may hold formal responsibility for appraisal decisions affecting permanent preservation. The specific allocation of responsibility depends on organizational structure, sector, and jurisdiction, and is typically defined in retention and disposition policies or authorities.
How should decisions about historical value be documented?
Decisions relating to historical value are typically documented as part of the appraisal and disposition record, capturing the criteria applied, the reasoning behind the assessment, and the resulting disposition action, such as designation for transfer or permanent preservation. Maintaining this documentation supports the authenticity, integrity, and defensibility of recordkeeping decisions and provides an audit trail. The level of detail and format depend on organizational policy and, in some contexts, on requirements set by an archival authority or regulator.
What happens to records identified as having historical value after appraisal?
Records assessed as having enduring historical value are often designated for a disposition action such as transfer to an archive or arrangement for permanent preservation, rather than destruction. It is worth noting that disposition is a broader concept than destruction and may encompass transfer or long-term retention. Following such a decision, records may be prepared for transfer, described, and placed under preservation arrangements appropriate to their format. The specific handling depends on organizational policy, the medium of the records, and any applicable jurisdictional or archival authority requirements.

Common misconceptions

Historical value is the same as retention, so records with historical value are simply kept longer under a retention schedule.
Retention and historical value are distinct. Retention concerns how long records are kept to meet business, legal, or regulatory needs, while historical value concerns enduring worth that may justify a disposition outcome of permanent preservation or transfer to an archive. A record may reach the end of its retention period yet still be appraised as having historical value warranting continued preservation.
Any old record automatically has historical value.
Age alone does not confer historical value. Value is typically determined through appraisal against evidential and informational criteria and organizational policy. Many older records are appraised as transitory or duplicative and may be eligible for destruction, while some recent records may be appraised as having significant historical value.
Deciding that records have historical value means keeping everything indefinitely.
Historical value is applied selectively through appraisal to identify a subset of records warranting permanent preservation. Retaining everything indefinitely is generally not a recognized objective; disposition decisions, including destruction of records lacking enduring value, remain part of sound recordkeeping practice.

Best practices

Assess historical value through a documented appraisal process that considers evidential and informational factors, rather than relying on age or volume alone.
Distinguish clearly between retention decisions driven by business, legal, or regulatory need and disposition decisions to preserve records permanently for their historical value.
Record and justify appraisal decisions so that the basis for designating records as having historical value is transparent and defensible.
Consult applicable national archives guidance and organizational policy, recognizing that criteria and obligations for permanent preservation vary by jurisdiction and sector.
Coordinate with archival authorities where transfer of permanently valuable records is required or appropriate, treating transfer as a distinct disposition outcome from destruction.
Review appraisal decisions periodically, since judgments about enduring significance can be affected by evolving research interest, organizational change, and policy.