Archives Outside

For people who love, use and manage archives

Archives Outside - For people who love, use and manage archives

Category Archives: Regional Repositories

Event: A morning tea with the Carrington Albums [Armidale]

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Three stunning hand-painted leather-bound volumes from a collection more than a century old will be on public display in Armidale on Wednesday 5 November.

NSW State Records Director Geoff Hinchcliffe will visit the University of New England Heritage Centre — a State Records Regional Archive Centre — armed with three albums from the precious 22-volume Carrington collection, including one album featuring pages from  Tenterfield.
B“These fragile cloth-hinged albums, which only recently came into the public domain, were originally presented as a farewell gift to
Lord Carrington, Governor of New South Wales from 1885 to 1890,” Mr Hinchcliffe said.Elephant Crest

“Lord Carrington was a much respected Governor in the 1880s and the finely detailed illuminated borders, hand painted
illustrations and well-wishing messages from residents, towns and associations across the state included in the albums indicate the high regard in which he was held.

“The volumes also give valuable insight into the optimistic and patriotic sentiment of the time in the lead up to Federation, with many of the gilt-edged pages proudly depicting flora and fauna distinctive to a region, local agricultural scenes or streetscapes of burgeoning rural towns.”

In 2014 the descendants of Lord Carrington donated the volumes to the people of NSW and they were presented to State Records NSW by then Governor Marie Bashir.

Date:  Wednesday 5 November 2014

Time: 10.00am

Location: University of New England Heritage Centre, Cnr Dangar and Kentucky Streets

RSVP: By Friday 31  October 2014 (morning tea provided)

Contact details: Ph:(02) 6773 6555 email: heritage@une.edu.au

Carrington Volume 4

 

145 minutes in Wagga: The 1954 Royal Tour

“February 13, 1954, has long been regarded by many as one of the most important days in Wagga Wagga’s history – the day Queen Elizabeth II and her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh, visited our city as part of their 1954 Royal Tour.

A special exhibition has been arranged between State Records NSW and the Parliament of NSW to commemorate 60 years since the 1954 Royal Tour and is on display at Parliament House in Sydney and the Western Sydney Records Centre until March 31.

At CSU Regional Archives, we too are revisiting the Royal Tour (from Wagga’s perspective) with an exhibition of material from both our own Collection and the Museum of the Riverina. The exhibition, which includes photographs, commemorative items, and a 15min film of the visit, will be on display in the Archives on CSU’s South Campus until 31 March.

1-rw43-39 Queen Wagga Wagga

 

Novacastrians to the rescue – valuable school records preserved

Two weeks ago I was lucky enough to attend a morning tea at Newcastle Council Chambers at which a full set of Admission registers from Newcastle Girls High School and 2 additional Admission registers from Newcastle Boys High School were handed over to State Records NSW. They will be be stored at the Regional Repository at Newcastle Region Library where they will be arranged and described and made accessible to the wider community.

Newcastle Boys High School Admission registers

Admission registers in particular are a great source of social history with their detailed information about students and their families. This is a wonderful example of people who valued the records and what they represented saving them from destruction and ensuring their long term preservation by returning them to public custody. Big thanks are due to the Newcastle Boys High School Old Boys Association and the Newcastle Girls High School Ex-Students Association, and in particular to Bill Shute and Robyn Gordon who guided the return of the records. In fact the Old Boys Association went one step further and provided digitised copies of all known Admission registers for both institutions!

Digitised Copies of the Admission registers

In both cases it appears that the records would not have survived without the swift intervention of concerned individuals. Their path back to public custody was a long one and the records were cared for privately for many years. Local Studies Librarian, Sue Ryan, and her team at Newcastle Region Library were instrumental in the return of these records. Without the relationship that they developed with the Ex-Students Associations and their willingness to meet and address their concerns the return of these records may not have been possible. The end result is a win for all.