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October marks Archives Month in most of the states in the union, and for the sixth consecutive year, California will be participating. To celebrate, the State Archives will be hosting an open house at 1020 O Street on Saturday, Oct. 3, starting at 4 p.m. and ending at 8:30 p.m.

Stephanie Hamashin, an archivist who will be working the event, spoke about what attendees can expect.

"The most important part of the exhibit will be both of California's constitutions," Hamashin said. "We haven't had the 1849 one on display in five years, and the one from 1879 is about the same. What is major is that both have never been shown simultaneously."

Due to the fragile nature of the documents, special lighting will be used to show them in their protective cases. A California Highway Patrol officer will guard the room. Both are written on animal hide, allegedly from goat, according to Hamashin.

"Our archivists will be here to answer questions about the artifacts and documents," Hamashin said. "They include students, interns and actual archivists."

Twelve organizations will be at the archives showing pieces from their collections.

"People from repositories like the Society of California Archivists, U.C. Davis and Sac State will be there," Hamashin said.

Hamashin said an added bonus is that anyone interested can get a behind-the-scenes tour where they will see where the documents are stored and how the displays are cared for.

"Dr. Thomas Clark, who is a professor at Sac State, will speak about the history of the constitutions at 5:45 p.m.," Hamashin said. "They are vital documents to our history because they represent the birth of the state itself."

Oct. 10 will see another major event for the archives, Family History Day.

"That day we will be showing people how to do research about their lineage and genealogy from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.," said Hamashin. "Both of these Saturdays are the biggest exhibits of the year for us."

Entrance to the State Archives is free on both days, as is parking around the building. More information on the archives can be found here. You can also call the archives at (916) 653-7715.