• The Korean Journal of Archival Studies
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• no.14
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• pp.53-89
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• 2006

The historical value of the official documents of the Government General of Choson preserved as permanent archived documents has long been recognized. However, the fact that only parts of the overall documents were preserved and that the contents of the existing documents is not uniform, results in many problems regarding the evaluation and usage of such documents as archives. This study attempts to appraise a series of archival documents related to urban district planning compiled during the colonial era. Although limited in terms of its applicability to the development of an evaluation method for the official documents of the Government General of Choson as a whole, by evaluating the value of these documents based on the background of the documents produced during the Government General of Choson's implementation of its colonial policy, this study provides an important indicator of how such documents should be used in the future. On the other hand, the assessment of historical records such as the official documents of the Government General of Choson which have already been designated and preserved as permanent archived documents should not be perceived as an attempt to dispose of the relevant documents. With regard to the appraisal of historical archives, it is necessary to consider measures to link such documents with existing databases or information contents in order to heighten access to and usage of the relevant documents in the future.