As Public History MA students at American University, we created this exhibit examining the relationships between archives and the communities they serve. We decided to focus our study and exhibit around archives in Washington, DC. The ways archives have engaged their broader communities has changed drastically over time. Many people view archives as inaccessible -- many of them are at universities, they can be hard to get into without an appointment, and visitors must follow a lot of strict rules. In our project, we highlight the ways archives have attempted to break this barrier between themselves and the communities they exist within. Our case studies demonstrate the challenges, failures, and successes of doing so. We hope that this exhibit will be helpful to history students, archivists, and any other member of the public interested in learning more about community collaboration in DC archives.