Archivists create detailed descriptions of their collections, not only describing the items in the collection, but often also providing background history on highly relevant people, places, and events. These detailed descriptions get converted into a standard document commonly known as the Finding Aid. Once you identify an archive with collections that might be relevant to your topic, locate where the institution shares their finding aids and spend time assessing the descriptions to determine what they have and how it might be relevant to your project.
Finding aids which describe the collection and contain elements such as index of its contents, an inventory of folders, a detailed list of items within the folders as well as contextual information on the creator, the topics, and the methods of collecting, preserving, and describing the collection.
BUT be aware that not all archival institutions provide finding aids online, but it is becoming more common. When digging through an archive's website in search of finding aids, keep an eye out also for closely related terms like inventory or collection description. They may also simply present a "catalog" for you to search; an archive's catalog will usually search its finding aids and (if applicable) any digital items they have.
Loyola University New Orleans Special Collections and Archives provides their Finding Aids online via the ArchivesSpace portal. You can browse collections and material descriptions via this link: https://loynosca.libraryhost.com/
Searching and Browsing Tips
Specific Terms
If you have a specific term such as "Mardi Gras" or "Carnival" use the general search box to see which collections might also include that word or phrase. Using special characters such as " " or + might provide better results as these signifiy to the computer that you want certain combinations of words not just individual words. These are called Boolean Operators.
Additionally, you can limit the text search across specific fields include names of creators, words in titles, or notes.
To View All Collections
Select the option in the record type box to "limit all collections" to see all Loyno Finding Aids online.
Date Ranges
When searching across time periods or for specific years, use the "From Year" or "To Year" when you have target dates or timeframes.
Sample Annotated Finding Aid from the Society of American Archivists
How to Use Finding Aids - A Tutorial from San Diego State University
How to Read a Finding Aid - A Guide from York University Libraries
How to Read a Finding Aid from Purdue University
Annotated Finding Aid from Purdue University