Record keeping in the 17th-19th centuries

I am planning a thesis on the conservation and preservation history
of the fur trade records of the Hudson's Bay Company, starting in
1670.  Part of my topic will be to compare HBC's records management
practices with the records management practices of other large
companies of the 17th through the 19th centuries.  I am having
difficulty finding information on the norms of document preservation
as practiced by large companies during these centuries.

Can anyone direct me to a source of information or literature on
this or a similar topic?  Even a suggestion as to where to look
would be greatly appreciated.

Rob Ridgen
Master's of Art Conservation (Research) student
Queen's University, Kingston, Canada


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 17:50
                 Distributed: Tuesday, January 20, 2004
                       Message Id: cdl-17-50-035
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