microfilm

A World Without Microfilm: How Local Governments are Leading the Charge in Digital Preservation

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In October 2025, the National Association of Government Archives & Records Administrators (NAGARA) hosted an online forum centered on Advocacy for Archives. Two Ohio Electronic Records Committee members, Tina Ratcliff and Elise Kelly (along with Stephen Badenhop, Director of Archives and Records Manager for Union County, Ohio), co-presented on the future of microfilm and how Ohio’s local governments are adapting to these changes.

The presentation centered on three phases: “How did we get here?” “Where are we now?”, and
“What are we doing to face a future without microfilm?”

For this blog post, we are going to focus on the first phase, “How did we get here?”, and the subsequent blog post will center on phases two and three. Phase one touched upon the usage of microfilm for historical preservation purposes of permanent records. Since the 1950s, Ohio and its local government repositories have utilized microfilm for preserving historical and permanent records.

The obsolescence of microfilm and the emergence of digital records have been frequent topics of discussion among archivists and records managers across the nation for the past couple of years. In addition, supplies and the production of microfilm have become more tenuous in recent years. In 2025, Fuji Film, a major microfilm supplier, announced that it would no longer manufacture microfilm.  Discussing these issues became a focal point at a Spring 2025 Ohio County Archivists & Records Managers Association (CARMA) meeting.

It was determined at this meeting that a committee (the Digital Initiatives & Standards Committee (DISC)) would be formed to create a guide on how to transition from microfilm permanent record preservation to electronic permanent record preservation. DISC’s goal is to “establish best practices, guidelines, and consistent standards for the creation and maintenance of electronic records and to ensure they are retained in a trustworthy, accessible, and reliable manner.”

In next month’s blog post, we will discuss the DISC committee’s current work and projects, and outline the next steps for the digital preservation guide.

Digitizing Microfilm – Benefits and Drawbacks

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For many governmental departments and organizations, digital preservation has been a concern for the past several years. One such concern has been what to do with microfilm in the next five to ten years and should your microfilm records be digitized.

Benefits of Microfilm:

  • Microfilm can last up to 500 years if stored in the proper conditions;

  • Eye-readable – can view with a light source and a magnifying glass.

Drawbacks of Microfilm:

  • Large collection of records on microfilm and your microfilm is only for records preservation purposes, not for use. You don’t have “access copies” for many of these records that are on microfilm;

  • Limited physical storage space for microfilm;

  • Departments need access to records that are on microfilm but they do not have the machines to read the microfilm;

  • Some types of film are too expensive to create duplicate copies;

  • Don’t have the budget to store duplicate copies at an off-site location for disaster preparedness purposes;

  • An inventory of what is on the rolls of microfilm may not exist;

  • Parts for microfilm readers may/have become obsolete;

  • Have to train people on how to use the microfilm readers;

  • Microfilm may develop vinegar syndrome if you do not have an environmentally controlled space to store them properly.

Benefits of digitizing Microfilm:

  • Digital preservation preserves the digital record and creates an “access copy”;

  • Can migrate the format so that it will always be accessible;

  • Cloud-based storage and glacier storage. Glacier storage is a Cloud-based type of storage that is cheaper since these records do not need to be accessed however, they need to be preserved;

  • Search-Engine based (online platform) accessibility for certain digital preservation systems, the public and/or staff can access;

  • Continual 24/7 monitoring of digital records;

  • Will no longer have to store microfilm which will save space and money.

Drawbacks of Digitizing Microfilm:

  • Extensive project especially if you have a large microfilm collection – need to prioritize;

  • Limited time and staff to carry out project.

Elise Kelly
Multimedia Archivist, Greene County Records Center and Archives