Heritage Centre archives arrangement formalised

July 19, 2007

Yesterday, at the stroke of a pen, the University of New England Heritage Centre became an official repository for NSW State records. This follows nearly half a century of "limited custodianship" of government records at UNE.

The signing of a Distributed Management Agreement at the Heritage Centre marked the transition from what UNE Archivist Bill Oates called "a gentlemen's agreement" to a more formal arrangement.

"UNE has been collecting community records for preservation and research in its Dixson Library since 1957," Mr Oates explained. "This was extended, in 1960, to providing archival storage and controlled public access to regional records in the UNE Archives. Formal transfers to UNE of State Archives relevant to New England and the North Coast date back to 1963. These were, officially, "loans" that were subject to recall. Yesterday's signing of the Distributed Management Agreement means that the UNE Heritage Centre is now an authorised repository of these regional State records."

The Director of the NSW State Records Authority, Mr David Roberts (pictured here), travelled to Armidale to sign the agreement, and to see the work of the Heritage Centre and its staff at UNE's C.B. Newling Centre. UNE's Acting Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic Services), Ms Eve Woodberry, signed on behalf of the University.

Mr Oates said the State Archives already housed at the UNE Heritage Centre occupied 1.3 km of the 4 km of total shelf space. "The University is proud of its long history of providing a repository for State Archives relating to New England and the North Coast," he said. "These include such valuable historical resources as Lands Office, police, court, and mining records. The new agreement will involve the transfer of even more records to the UNE Heritage Centre over the next five years, making them accessible to researchers from UNE and the wider community."

THE PHOTOGRAPH of Mr David Roberts displayed here expands to include UNE's Ms Eve Woodberry. It was taken yesterday during the signing of the agreement.

Posted by Jim Scanlan at July 19, 2007 06:20 PM