Final edition of North American Permanent Papers

In 1988, when I realized that the U.S. paper industry was starting a
massive conversion to alkaline papermaking, I knew this historic
event had to be reported to the librarians, bookbinders and others
who had been agitating for it so long.

I knew I didn't have time for this project, but I soon saw that no
one else would do it, so I started a newsletter in January 1988 to
cover developments.  Now the great majority of mills make alkaline
paper, and the project is nearly over.  The last issue of the
Alkaline Paper Advocate will appear in a month or so.  And we
published the final edition of North American Permanent Papers a
month or so ago.

We haven't had time to send out the press release and review copies
we planned to, so I thought I'd announce it on the DistList and
invite requests for review copies.

    North American Permanent Papers, 3rd ed.  E. McCrady, ed.  June
    1998.  60 pp.  ISBN 0-9622071-4-4.  $19.50 plus postage, from
    Abbey Publications.

I estimate that there are about 1100 printing and writing papers
(give or take a few hundred) made in the U.S. and Canada.  This
doesn't count groundwood papers, varieties of a single brand (e.g.,
weights, colors or finishes), or private brands (papers made to
order).  We surveyed all the mills that make significant amounts of
printing & writing paper and found about 450 papers on the market
that meet the permanence requirements of ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992. Most
of these are listed in the main part of the book, by use (e.g.,
office copying) and by company.  Telephone numbers are provided for
the sales or marketing department for each of the 33 paper companies
that responded.

We added a new section this time ("Part II"), where manufacturers
were invited to describe briefly their archival boards and papers
that were special in some way.  Some were market grades, some were
private grades, some were merely a type of paper the mill could make
to order.  The products are of seven types:

    *   archival board
    *   watermarked copy paper for dissertations
    *   paper or board for safe storage of photographs (i.e., that
        pass the P.A.T.)
    *   dark or bright-colored permanent paper or board
    *   handmade and artists' papers
    *   buffered groundwood for journals and magazines
    *   archival paper or board the company can make on request.

Six background chapters follow the lists of papers.  Most of them
have been revised and updated:

    Development of permanent record papers, by W.K. Wilson
    The nature of permanence
    Papermaking facts [how paper is made and distributed]
    The ANSI/NISO Z39.48 standard and other standards
    Permanence testing by the purchaser
    Paper products as enclosures for photographic images,
        by Peter Z. Adelstein

Ellen McCrady, Editor
Abbey Publications
7105 Geneva Dr.
Austin, TX 78723
512-929-3992
Fax: 512-929-3995

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                  Conservation DistList Instance 12:11
                   Distributed: Friday, July 17, 1998
                       Message Id: cdl-12-11-013
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