Legacy and the Hidden World of Archives with Emily Cabaniss

Seeing Death Clearly

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When we think about end-of-life, we rarely think about archivists, but maybe we should. Emily Cabaniss, a Seattle-based archivist, shares how her work preserving the personal records of the deceased offers profound insight into grief, legacy, and dying. Her reflections reveal how archivists often act as invisible companions to the dead, holding space for stories left behind.

As an archivist in the Pacific Northwest, Emily works with unique historical records, from personal letters to business documents, textiles, and audio recordings. Her job involves preserving these items and making them accessible, ensuring the legacies of individuals and communities are not lost to time. She explains that an archive is not just a storage room but a program focused on the care, description, and access of primary sources. Emily shares how deeply relational this work can be, especially since most of the people she interacts with through the records are deceased.

She reflects on the emotional and ethical complexities of handling someone’s personal materials after they’ve died. From diary entries to correspondence, archivists like Emily witness the private lives of people who will never know they’re being seen. This creates a unique form of grief, parasocial connections to those long gone, where the archivist feels close to a person whose descendants will never know them.

Her experiences working with homicide files also highlighted the troubling ways society views death, particularly the objectification of victims. It made her more aware of how records contribute to someone’s legacy and how archivists play a crucial role in shaping how that legacy is remembered.

Emily’s story is a powerful reminder that healing, grief, and conscious living extend far beyond immediate end-of-life care. The work of archivists intersects with death care in unexpected ways, holding sacred space for memory, identity, and humanity.

To be part of Emily’s end-of-life project, reach out to her [email protected]

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