A manual, designed to define the materials of local history and to tell how to deal with them, provides step-by-step instructions for setting up such collections. The collecting and selecting process is described, as are the organizational problems and possibilities in handling books, pamphlets, newspapers, periodicals, photographs, pictures, tape recordings, ephemera, clippings, manuscript materials, memorabilia, maps, drawings, and private collections. Additional advice is given for obtaining ownership or use of nonpublished materials, physical preservation of materials, cataloging and indexing, and providing services to the public and to local and national organizations. Information is also provided for training staff and volunteers as well as for developing special projects in the areas of oral history, community records, community resources, current history collections, and resource persons. A bibliography and a list of addresses and sources are included. (LS)