Handmade Texts: A Sentimental and Dying Genre

A handwritten family recipe, a common keepsake to be passed down from generation to generation.  

A eulogy that was written by a grieving daughter in memory of her father. 

A poem written by a man after his wife passed away. 

A letter written by a WWII soldier in Europe to his family back in the USA.

In today's increasingly digital world, our forms of communication have become immediate.  When most people today want to reach out to a loved one, they will first think to send a text or email, perhaps a phone call if they want to feel more personal. Despite these conveniences, there are people who still take the time to write notes and letters to their loved ones by hand. These handwritten messages are seen by many as more intimate and personal than the relatively sterile digital writing. As such, it is common for people to keep handwritten messages from loved ones for years after the original texts were made. When compared to the attachment people have to digital texts, the emotional value of handmade texts is immesurable.

Handmade texts are great for archivists and anyone else who wants to see as much of our writings as possible make it into the future. As writing has become increasingly dominated by the digital realm, many of the texts we create will end up being deleted. Archivists from the Montana Historical Society have noted that "archivists of the future may have to be hacking gurus ... if they ever want to have access to the same sort of historical material currently stored in old letters" (archivalmethods.com). Although these handwritten texts can be properly recorded as digital copies, they must survive being thrown out or worn out in order to be immortalized in a space like the Museum of Everyday Writing.

Cited source: https://www.archivalmethods.com/blog/preserving-old-letters/ (Problematic Changes Affecting Letter Writing)