Documents at the National Archives, Kew

[Andrew Arthy]

Hi,

I posted this over at the Luftwaffe Experten Message Board, but thought I'd repeat it here as well:



Depending on the quality of the microfilm, it is quite possible to photograph the image from the reader so that it is readable. You are allowed to do this (at least no-one pulled me up for doing so in September 2006).

A digital camera is definitely the best way to copy records at the National Archives, Kew. It's free to use and very quick, for both paper and microfilm records. I managed to photograph 40,000 pages in four weeks at the National Archives at Kew, and another 20,000 in two weeks at NARA, Washington D.C.

AIR 40 is probably the best source for Luftwaffe material at the NA. AIR 40 is all on paper, as is HW 5 ULTRA, while DEFE 3 ULTRA is on microfilm. RAF ORBs and Combat Reports are all on microfilm.

Cheers,
Andrew A.

[Peter Evans]

To add to Andrews excellent comments above, cameras are positively encouraged these days, but one word of warning, tripods and mini-pods are not allowed. There are however several bunches of tables with built in camera stands. These table clusters are numbered 5, 25 & 34 with each having approx 6-8 stands per cluster. As you can imagine, these tables are very popular, so if you need one for your visit, pre-booking via the PRO website is a must. There are a handful of separate tables dotted about with stands, but these get taken up fairly quickly. Having said that, cameras can be used freehand on any of the tables, but ensure that you have the flash switched off!

Cheers

Peter D Evans
LEMB Administrator