I went to the National Archives and Record Administration Wednesday to research documents for a story I’m working on. The facility probably takes up more than an acre of land and is pretty high security.
It’s all the way out in Perris — which is about 50 miles from here — and is literally in the middle of nowhere.

You can’t go without an appointment, and you can’t make an appointment without a box, location and ascension number from the courts (this tells employees exactly where the documents are).
If you can get all that and make it out to Perris, there’s a laundry list of rules you have to follow when once your begin reviewing documents. Here is what’s not allowed inside the review room:

Overcoats
Raincoats
Hats
Pens
Notebooks
Folders
Cell Phones

And here’s what you can’t do with the documents:

Folders must not hang off the edge of the table
You may not hold the records up like you would a newspaper
You should handle the records only when turning a page
Do not lean on the records or run your fingers over the pages as you read
You may not lick your fingers to get a better hold on the documents

I kind of felt like I was taking the GRE all over again. Needless to say, it was refreshing to see the amount of people exercising their rights to freedom of information. The archive houses civil, criminal and bankruptcy cases. According to one employee I spoke with, they usually see at least handful of people a day.

And just to give you an idea of just how out in the middle of nowhere this place is, take a look at this freaky looking house reminiscent of Leatherface’s lair about a mile from the facility.