However, North Otago Museum curator of archives Chris Meech likes to think of such a collection as an opportunity to preserve the area's rich history.
In his four years in the role, he has seen countless documents of historical importance, from territorial authority-related documents to family photographs, donated.
History is important to Mr Meech, who has plenty of his own to share.
Originally from Wellington, he grew up in Strathmore and was educated at St Patrick's College.
However, his formative years were not quite as settled.
''We moved around a lot as kids,'' he said.
''Dad had different jobs around the place, so we lived for a while in Masterton and we lived in Australia for a little while too.''
Mr Meech attended Victoria University, gaining a science degree in mathematics and an arts degree majoring in philosophy.
With a desire to travel, he did what he could to earn money.
''After that and during that actually I was working as a window cleaner. I gathered enough fund to head overseas and I went on a bit of a holiday to Southeast Asia.''
Inspired, he found work as a teacher at an English language school at Kunming, in Yunnan in southwest China.
''At that time, the early '90s, I was the only foreign English teacher in a secondary school in that city, which is quite a big city. I did that for about 18 months or two years, then I came back to New Zealand.''
From there, he linked up with Volunteer Service Abroad and took another teaching job, this time at the national University of Laos, based in Dongdok, Vientiane, where he spent two years.
''That was a very rewarding job. I could speak Chinese haltingly well, enough to have good conversations. I could read newspapers and so forth and I was able to talk to the Chinese community there. I picked up the Laos language from my students and the people around, too.''
In the late 1990s, Mr Meech left the university but stayed in Laos, working with the United Nations on a development programme for highland peoples, focused on the delivery of health initiatives, sanitation and fresh water.
In about 2000, he decided to return to New Zealand.
Mr Meech worked in Dunedin in the reference section at the University of Otago library, where he spent about eight years before moving to the Waitaki district - first working at the Oamaru Public Library as reference and heritage librarian then joining the museum about four years ago.
He said his primary role was ''caring for the documentary heritage of the district'', which numbered about 150,000 pieces.
''There's two facets to it ... there's the council facet, protecting those records that are protected under the Public Records Act and then there's the community archive, which is from community groups and private individuals. It could be books, manuscripts, company records, photographs or oral history material.''
He also handled public inquiries, mostly around family history and cemetery plots.
Mr Meech said while the North Otago Archive was small, its staff, including dedicated volunteers, did that same kind of work many larger institutions did.
He believed the archive was ''vitally important'' to the district.
''There's always been a strong interest in North Otago history. People here have valued the past and want to ensure that story is told. What we do is connect people with the collection ... that's a very special thing.''
The archive was established in 1987.
