Content area
Full text
Community archives play an important role in heritage and cultural wellbeing but the quality of care they receive and their accessibility vary greatly. This paper presents the results of research which investigated the factors required for maintenance of community archives and how well a selection of New Zealand archives exhibited them. The results showed that many of the factors required for maintenance are interrelated and interdependent but that some have a particularly strong impact on the maintenance of the archival records and the evidence they contain. Based on these results and factors, possible strategies for enhancing the future sustainability of community archives are proposed. Edited version of a paper presented at A sense of place: local studies in Australia and New Zealand conference Sydney 5-6 May 2011.
In recent years I have become increasingly concerned about the plight of community archives - the records themselves and the dedicated people who try, often against the odds, to collect and manage the archival heritage of their communities.
It is therefore pleasing to now have the opportunity to share the results of my research with colleagues in the library world, who are often collectors of community archives. In New Zealand, for instance, a survey undertaken by Archives New Zealand suggests that, while 30% of community archives are held by voluntary organisations and historical societies, 22% are the direct responsibility of local government - 15% in local authority and 7% in public library institutions.1 I expect the situation is not dissimilar in Australia.
The importance of community archives
Community archives reflect our culture and identity and are therefore an important part of our heritage. Without them, or without appropriate management of them, our ability to understand where we have come from is diminished. An American guide to local history describes it this way 'local neighborhood, town, or city, much like the family or the ethnic group to which one belongs, are social realities that help provide individuals with a sense of identity'.2 Or as one of my interview subjects explained the value of their community archives to his area
I think, in many respects, it is the unique part of a heritage - of the heritage of a community - because it is the actual records that you've...