Output 1.2
Develop, manage and promote a visible, known and accessible national collection that engages and informs the community; and foster appreciation of the role of archives in society.
Overview
Steady growth in all areas relating to the accessibility and use of the collection has continued this year. The increased percentage of the collection that was reviewed and documented makes it easier for the public to find and view records they seek.
Technical development of the Archives’ descriptive systems and RecordSearch database undertaken this year, particularly in the area of item description will, when completed, improve the accessibility of records over the longer term.
Output 1.2.1 – A collection reviewed to current appraisal standards
The Collection Review Project was established in 1999 to undertake a systematic review of the Archives’ holdings of more than 400 shelf kilometres of records.
All records targeted for review were confirmed as either archival, temporary or requiring sentencing.
A total of 194,118 shelf metres of records have been reviewed since the Collection Review Project commenced in May 1999. This represents 43 per cent of the then total Archives’ record holdings of 444,543 shelf metres. A total of 22,805 shelf metres of records were reviewed between 1 July 2002 and 30 June 2003. This represents 6 per cent of total Archives’ record holdings of 361,712 shelf metres at 30 June 2002.
Between 1 July 1999 and 30 June 2003 the Archives’ total record holdings decreased from 444 shelf kilometres to 354 shelf kilometres. During the same period the Archives accepted custody of an additional 27 shelf kilometres of records, so the total reduction in existing holdings was 117 shelf kilometres.
Review work during 2002–03 focused on three main areas:
- Review of records targeted for preservation and accessibility enhancement to ensure that records not of archival value were disposed of.
- Application of new records disposal authorities to appropriate groups of records.
- Implementation of review decisions made prior to 30 June 2002 by re-examining records at individual item level or requesting the relevant agencies to withdraw records from the Archives’ custody or authorise their disposal.
Output 1.2.2 – An organised and known collection
Quality: |
100 per cent of the collection is documented so that all items can be retrieved |
During the year there was considerable work on item level description, including the development of the Electronic Load Mechanism (ELM). The implementation of ELM in 2004–05 will facilitate the electronic capture and verification of item level data directly from agency recordkeeping systems into the Archives’ database, RecordSearch. Improved means of capturing item data in record description projects undertaken by contractors are also part of this facility. When this process is fully implemented, accurate and detailed information about record items will be more readily available in RecordSearch.
The Archives provided comments on the International Standard Archival Authority Record for Corporate Bodies, Persons and Families (ISAAR (CPF)) to the ASA Committee on Descriptive Standards, which is coordinating the Australian response to the revision of this standard. ISAAR (CPF) is a descriptive standard for describing contextual information about corporate bodies, persons and families who create or manage records.
Details of selected records transferred to and described by the Archives in 2002–03 are at Appendix I.
Table 7 – Record items described and digitised |
|||
| Record items |
2000–01 |
2001–02 |
2002–03 |
| |
|||
| Total number of items on RecordSearch (a) |
2 636 543 |
3 519 640 |
5 228 380 |
| Per cent increase |
13% |
33% |
49% |
| Item descriptions available to the public |
2 469 589 |
3 292 475 |
4 959 078 |
| Per cent increase |
12% |
33% |
51% |
| Total number of digitised pages on RecordSearch |
117 301 |
1 296 852 |
1 344 471 |
| Total number of digitised photographs on PhotoSearch (b) |
12 509 |
51 287 |
86 994 (c) |
| |
|||
(a) RecordSearch is the Archives’ collection database.
(b) PhotoSearch is the Archives’ photographic database.
(c) This figure includes 35 707 photographs digitised in 2002–03 that
will only be available online when the new Photosearch database is commissioned
in July 2003.
Output 1.2.3 – Public information
Public awareness of the Archives is continually increasing. Numerous articles and advertisements are published in the print media. The Archives is also publicised widely through radio and, to a lesser extent, television.
Throughout the year, Archives staff in all States and Territories have developed and delivered information and archival research training workshops; represented the organisation at key conferences and seminars through trade exhibitions and the presentation of papers; and joined with other cultural institutions to provide information to the community about access to archival collections.
 The Rt Hon. Ian Sinclair, AC, speaking at the release of the 1972 Cabinet papers in January 2003. |
 Cabinet decision regarding the acquisition of properties outside Aboriginal reserves. NAA: A5909,1002/AA |
Media profile
Significant media interest in the Archives was generated during 2002–03, with over 360 articles, interviews, features and clips appearing in print, radio and television across Australia, reaching an audience estimated in excess of 8 million. Regular listings in the monthly Qantas Inflight Magazine reached 105,000 Australian and overseas travellers. Other new audiences were targeted, including motoring enthusiasts, through a series of articles based on the Archives’ photographic collection, published in the Australian Classic Car magazine. Significant press stories included reports on the release of the 1972 Cabinet documents which featured on major television networks, in newspapers and on radio news programs. Other notable stories related to the exhibition Beacons by the Sea: Stories of Australian Lighthouses, the launch of the Australia’s Prime Ministers website, the Census Time Capsule, and the release of the World War II Nominal Roll, a listing of names of the service men and women who served during the war. The defence service records held by the Archives, from which the Nominal Roll was compiled, received extensive coverage, notably on Channel 9’s Today Show, which televised a 5-minute segment to a nation-wide audience. Major newspaper features included an Anzac Day article in The Australian, The Age and the Adelaide Advertiser, and a double-page feature in The Australian about online public access to the Archives’ digitised records, focusing on migrant records and war service records.
The Archives’ program of family history and research workshops that toured rural areas during the reporting period generated good media coverage, including national and regional ABC radio interviews and regional newspaper articles in such diverse publications as Northern Territory News, Koori Mail, Albury Post, Yorke Peninsula Country Times, Mt Gambier Border Watch, Exmouth Expression and the Guyra Argus.
Output 1.2.4 – Reference services
Quality: |
90 per cent of public customers rate services, programs and products as satisfactory |
Quantity: |
Number of reference inquiries |
During 2002–03, the Archives conducted regular surveys of researchers in the reading rooms of our eight offices. All respondents were either satisfied or very satisfied with the service provided by reference staff and 98 per cent were satisfied with our services and facilities. The occasional non-availability of the RecordSearch database was the most common cause of dissatisfaction.
Researchers who sought information about, or copies of, collection material through the national reference service were also surveyed. Satisfaction rates were very high, with 97 per cent reporting satisfaction with our response times and 94 per cent satisfied with the copies provided.
During 2002–03, more than 25,000 people visited Archives’ reading rooms to access the collection during the year. This is similar to the number recorded in the previous financial year. All researchers, including those with special needs such as a physical disability or special language needs, are welcome to visit our reading rooms. They are encouraged to advise of their visit in advance so that reference officers can confirm that the Archives holds the records they are seeking and can have them ready when they arrive.
During the year, 123,700 reference inquiries were received by the national reference service through mail, email, phone and fax. This represents an increase of 35 per cent on the number of inquiries received in the previous financial year. The increase is largely due to more requests for World War II service records and online digital copies of collection material.
The Archives responded to 94.25 per cent of inquiries within the 30-day standard of service.
In addition, 3, 663 requests for digital copies of collection material were received in 2002–03. Digital images of 47,619 pages of material were added to our website. The digitisation on demand service, which enables researchers to request digitisation of records via the Internet, delivers faster, cheaper and more equitable access to the Canberra collection for all Australians.
Figure 3 – Total number of digitised pages
Table 8 – Use of the collection by the public |
|||
|
|
2000–01 |
2001–02 |
2002–03 |
| |
|||
Reference inquiries |
|
|
|
| Remote reference inquiries (a) |
48 176 |
91 485 |
123 700 |
| Visits to reading rooms |
24 815 |
24 392 |
24 090 |
| Total reference inquiries |
72 991 |
115 877 |
147 790 |
| New visitors to reading rooms |
5 062 |
4 837 |
4 634 |
| Record items |
|
|
|
| Made available in reading rooms |
57 827 |
62 684 |
49 448 |
Made available for remote users (b) |
41 508 |
130 280 |
110 568 |
Total records made available for public use |
99 335 |
192 964 |
160 016 (c) |
| |
|||
(a) This figure includes digitisation on demand requests, which
commenced on 11 April 2001.
(b) This figure includes records provided in response to remote reference
inquiries and digitisation on demand service requests.
(c) The lower figure reflects a more accurate count of records made available
in reading rooms.
Table 9 – Use of the collection by Australian government agencies |
|||
|
|
2000–01 |
2001–02 |
2002–03 |
| |
|||
Reference inquiries |
|
|
|
| Remote reference inquiries |
910 |
1 200 |
826 |
| Visits to reading rooms |
800 |
968 |
899 |
| Total reference inquiries |
1 710 |
2 168 |
1 725 |
| Record items issued to agencies |
82 636 |
48 533 (a) |
55 083 |
| |
|||
(a) This statistic has been corrected to include records issued to agencies not recorded on RecordSearch during the introduction of a new version of the system.
Figure 4 – Distribution of National Archives’ remote users, 2002
(view in more detail –
139kb)
Survey of off-site customers
 Extract from a World War II defence service record. NAA: A9301, 116699 |
A major customer survey was conducted in 2002 with responses from 667 off-site customers of Archives’ reference or copying services. The survey provided off-site customers around Australia with an opportunity to rate the usefulness of the Archives’ research aids, the quality of copy services and interactions with staff, and ease of access to the collection. In addition, 66 customers who had completed the main survey chose to take part in a follow-up phone survey about possible new services and charges for products and services. Forty-five per cent of survey respondents lived in regional, and in some cases remote, locations across Australia. The survey results will help to shape the Archives’ future services.
World War II records
In August 2002, the last of over one million defence service records of Australians who served in the armed forces in World War II were transferred to the Archives. Requests for access to these records peaked following the launch of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs World War II Nominal Roll in November 2002 and national publicity about the availability of the records. In 2002–03 the Archives received 45,857 requests for access to these records.
Redevelopment of PhotoSearch
PhotoSearch, the Archives’ online photographic database, was redeveloped during 2002–03. The redeveloped database contains descriptions of 470,000 photographs and over 60,000 digital images from all State and Territory offices.
RecordSearch
Changes to RecordSearch, the Archives’ online collection database, have improved its functionality and stability.
 Tim Jaggers digitises immigration records held in the Brisbane office. |
 Proclamation exempting Ay Soy from the Chinese Immigration Act 1888. The exemption allowed Chinese people already living in Australia to re-enter the country. NAA: J2481/192 |
An index to passenger arrivals was added to RecordSearch in early 2003. The index contains the names of passengers arriving by ship at Fremantle between January 1926 and August 1927. The indexing is being undertaken in the Perth office as part of a Work for the Dole program. Additional names are added to the index at regular intervals.
Specifications for the Reference and Access module of RecordSearch were developed during the year. This module will track and monitor Archives’ reference and access cases. The module will be implemented during 2003–04.
Digitisation of records
The Archives’ digitisation program includes proactive digitisation and the digitisation on demand service. Over 3 million images of collection material have been loaded to the Archives’ website since the Archives commenced its digitisation programs in 2001.
In its proactive digitisation program, the Archives selects significant or popular records in the collection and makes digital copies of them.
The Archives’ digitisation on demand service enables researchers to request the digitisation of certain records listed on the Archives’ online database RecordSearch. Digital images of these records are added to the RecordSearch listing and are available free of charge to all who have Internet access. The digitisation on demand service is currently available for most of the records located in Canberra. The Archives is reviewing the service. Feedback from customers indicates that Australians living in regional and rural Australia value the service as it enables them to access part of the Archives’ collection without having to visit the Canberra reading room or purchase photocopies. In 2002 the digitisation on demand program received a special commendation in the inaugural Prime Minister’s Awards for Excellence in Public Sector Management.
Access examination of records
The Archives Act 1983 provides a general right of access to Commonwealth records over 30 years old. Members of the public can submit applications to have records examined for public access. Before the Archives releases records, experienced staff assess them to ensure they are suitable for public release.
The Archives released 90 per cent of records for which people had requested access within 30 days and a further 96 per cent within 90 days. (The statutory maximum period for release of records is 90 days.) Four per cent of records requested were not made available within the statutory 90 days. Long response times generally resulted when records were referred to agencies or overseas governments for advice or where the record sought was not in the custody of the Archives.
In addition to responding to requests for access from members of the public, the Archives proactively examines records that are identified as likely to be of high research use. In 2002–03 records selected for proactive examination included:
- 1972 Cabinet records (released on 1 January 2003) and 1973 Cabinet records (due for release on 1 January 2004);
- 1952 Cabinet notebooks (released on 1 January 2003) and 1953 Cabinet notebooks (due for release on 1 January 2004);
- a range of records of, and associated with, Australia’s Prime Ministers; and
- 1940s records of the Department of External Affairs.
Table 10 – Access examination of records |
|||
|
|
2000–01 |
2001–02 |
2002–03 |
| |
|||
Record items examined by streamlined methods |
211 009 |
106 670 |
81 915 |
| Record items examined folio by folio |
8 078 |
9 196 |
37 626 |
| Total record items examined |
219 087 |
115 866 |
119 541 |
| |
|||
Table 11 – Access status of record items examined |
|||
| Record status of items |
2000–01 |
2001–02 |
2002–03 |
| |
|||
Items |
|
|
|
Opened without exemption |
213 674 |
110 390 |
112 026 |
| Opened with partial exemption |
4 041 |
3 511 |
3 979 |
Wholly exempt |
159 |
123 |
739 |
Other (eg closed period) |
1 213 |
1 840 |
2 797 |
| Total |
219 087 |
115 864 |
119 541 |
| |
|||
Table 12 – Time taken to respond to applications for access from the public |
|||
| Response time |
2000–01 |
2001–02 |
2002–03 |
| |
|||
Number of record items sought (a) |
24 997 |
24 883 |
32 353 |
Time taken |
|
|
|
0–30 days |
19 378 (83%) |
19 056 (80%) |
29 759 (90%) |
| 31–60 days |
1 769 (8%) |
1 048 (4%) |
1 348 (4%) |
61–90 days |
677 (3%) |
1 425 (6%) |
666 (2%) |
More than 90 days |
1 330 (6%) |
2 323 (10%) |
1 420 (4%) |
| |
|||
(a) An application for access is required when access is sought to records that have not been made publicly available before.
Internal reconsideration of access decisions
When the Archives withholds material in response to an application for access submitted by a member of the public, that person can apply for a review of the decision. The first stage of the appeal process is an internal reconsideration of the decision by the Archives.
An internal reconsideration is a review of the decision to refuse or restrict access. An Archives’ officer other than the person who made the original decision undertakes the review. The Archives Act requires the Archives to notify the applicant of the decision on an internal reconsideration within 14 days.
Table 13 – Internal reconsideration of access decisions |
|||
| Access decisions |
2000–01 |
2001–02 |
2002–03 |
| |
|||
Record items for which internal reconsideration requested |
102 |
34 |
36 |
Decisions outstanding |
243 |
203 |
204 |
Record items processed during year |
|
|
|
| Decision maintained |
10 |
14 |
7 |
Decision modified |
24 |
58 |
22 |
Decision reversed |
4 |
2 |
3 |
Request withdrawn |
4 |
0 |
3 |
| |
|||
Table 14 – Time taken to respond to internal reconsideration of access decisions |
|||
| Time taken |
2000–01 |
2001–02 |
2002–03 |
| |
|||
0–14 days |
31 (74%) |
10 (14%) |
12 (38%) |
More than 14 days |
11 (26%) |
64 (86%) |
23 (62%) |
| |
|||
Appeals to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal
If the Archives upholds a decision to refuse or restrict access after internal reconsideration, applicants are entitled to appeal to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.
During 2002–03, three applications for review of decisions made under the Archives Act were lodged with the Tribunal. Two applications lodged by the same person were handled as one case. Preliminary conferences in December 2002, March 2003 and a directions hearing in June 2003 discussed the progress of this appeal. At the end of 2002–03, the Archives was awaiting advice as to whether this matter would proceed to hearing. A preliminary conference for the third application, lodged in June, will be held early in 2003–04.
Output 1.2.5 – Publications and websites
Quality: |
90 per cent of public customers rate services, programs and products as satisfactory |
Publications
Informal feedback from readers, and reviews in journals and newspapers, indicated a high level of satisfaction with the Archives’ publications in 2002–03. Each issue of the Archives’ newsletter Memento generated positive feedback and numerous requests from people asking to be added to the mailing list.
Canberra following Griffin: A Design History of Australia’s National Capital by Paul Reid received good reviews. The publication was reviewed in 16 periodicals, including newspapers (Canberra Times, Sydney Morning Herald, Educare News) and journals (Landscape Australia, Architecture Australia, Architectural Science Review, Cartography and others). Reviewers commented on the publication’s high production quality, large selection of images, illuminating text, comprehensive coverage and thorough research. One stated that the book ‘will probably remain the authoritative work on the early planning of Canberra’. In October 2002 the book was awarded a silver medal in the Printing Industries Craftsmanship Awards in the category of casebound books.
An Anthropologist in Papua: The Photography of F.E. Williams, 1922–39 was reviewed positively in The Canberra Times, Oceanic Arts Journal, Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute and The Independent (of Papua New Guinea). In April 2003, Crawford House Publishing, co-publisher of the book, advised that it had received ‘some great comment in the USA’ (North American rights were sold to the University of Hawaii Press). In May the book was highly commended in the book category of the 2003 Museums Australia Publication Design Awards.
Three other Archives’ publications won awards this year. Developing Images: Mildenhall’s Photography of Early Canberra won the Museums Australia Publications Design Award in the book category. 1901 and All That: A Federation Resource Kit was joint winner of the Museums Australia Publications Design Award in the education category. A Vision Splendid: How the Griffins Imagined Australia’s Capital won the 51st Annual Australian Publishers Association Book Design Award in the category Best Designed Exhibition Catalogue or Book.
During the year work proceeded on several co-publications, and a number of research guides were published. Three guides in the Prime Ministers series were published: Our First Six, Joseph Lyons and Stanley Melbourne Bruce. The richness of the Archives’ copyright collection is now more accessible to the public through the new guide, A Nation’s Imagination: Australia’s Copyright Records, 1854–1968. Five previously published guides were updated and reprinted to meet continued demand.
A total of 6328 saleable publications were distributed in 2002–03. Over 11,000 copies of each issue of Memento were distributed free, of which approximately 7500 were sent to subscribers. Thousands of other free publications were distributed. Many of our publications are also accessed by the public through the Archives’ website (www.naa.gov.au).
Thirteen new Fact Sheets were issued during the year, 80 existing Fact Sheets were revised and reissued, and three Fact Sheets were superseded and withdrawn.
A list of publications produced in 2002–03 is at Appendix J.
Websites
The Archives manages its website at www.naa.gov.au along with three other websites: the Documenting a Democracy website (foundingdocs.gov.au), the Australia’s Prime Ministers website (primeministers.naa.gov.au) and the Archives of Australia website (archivenet.gov.au).
All the Archives’ websites rate highly on most aspects of the online information service obligations. The Archives’ website at www.naa.gov.au now rates very highly on all levels of accessibility standards specified by the W3C (World Wide Web Consortium). The websites are tested regularly against the three top Internet browsers used by our clients. Improvements are continually made to all websites in response to changes in policy, accessibility guidelines and customer demand.
During the reporting period, the Archives’ website at www.naa.gov.au recorded 2,577,071 unique visits, the Documenting a Democracy website received 313,846 visits, and the Archives of Australia website received 120,689 visits.
In 2002–03 the Archives released a new website (Australia’s Prime Ministers) and an e-commerce facility (the Archives’ eShop). The Australia’s Prime Ministers website received 94,100 unique visits between its launch in November 2002 and 30 June 2003. The Archives’ secure online shop received 6291 unique visits between its introduction in April 2003 and 30 June 2003.
The Prime Ministers Papers Project
The $1.6 million allocation for the Prime Ministers Papers Project, which began in 2000–01, was acquitted by June 2003, one year before schedule. The project brought together many areas of expertise within the Archives, enhancing accessibility to the Prime Ministerial records in the Archives’ collection through improved descriptions of records and digitisation. More than 30,000 items were digitised and made available to researchers. Sound recordings and film of Prime Ministers have also been preserved by copying. Arrangement and description was completed for the records of Joseph Lyons, Sir Earle Page, Harold Holt and Sir Robert Menzies.
A major outcome of the project was the establishment of the portal website Australia’s Prime Ministers, officially launched by the Prime Minister, the Hon. John Howard, MP, in November 2002. The website enables researchers to locate records of Prime Ministers held by the National Archives and many other Australian and overseas institutions. Three research guides to the records of particular Prime Ministers were produced in print and online formats and an ongoing program of further guides to Prime Ministers’ papers is under way.
A National Online Archival Network
Many Australian archival institutions now provide web-enabled access to their collection databases. However, this information is not pooled, so users must have knowledge of which archival institution holds the material they require. The Archives is working to remove these barriers and allow users to access a single online search facility to identify the archival resources they seek. On 8 October 2002 the Archives hosted a summit meeting of 45 stakeholders and experts about developing a National Online Archival Network (NOAN).
The meeting supported the establishment of NOAN. The meeting also agreed that the sector should develop a model and framework for online archival data sharing. With the assistance of the Council of Federal State and Territory Archives (COFSTA) and other stakeholders and experts including the National Library of Australia, a strategic plan and business analysis for the project will be developed in 2003–04.
Output 1.2.6 – Exhibitions
Quality: |
90 per cent of public customers rate services, programs and products as satisfactory |
Quantity: |
Number of public programs projects delivered and number of customers |
This year the exhibitions in the Archives’ gallery in Canberra were A Vision Splendid: How the Griffins Imagined Australia’s Capital and Beacons by the Sea: Stories of Australian Lighthouses, both developed by the Archives, and Matthew Flinders: The Ultimate Voyage from the State Library of New South Wales. Visitors book comments were highly complimentary about exhibition subject matter, presentation and style as were media stories and anecdotal feedback.
A visitor survey was conducted during April and May to gauge visitors’ reactions to both the permanent and visiting exhibitions. Of those responding, 94 per cent rated their visit as either meeting or exceeding their expectations.
 Senator the Hon. Rod Kemp, Minister for the Arts and Sport with exhibition curator Mr Paul Brunton of the State Library of New South Wales at the launch of the exhibition Matthew Flinders: The Ultimate Voyage in March 2003. |
Development work on several forthcoming Archives’ exhibitions took place in 2002–03. An exhibition featuring material from the Archives’ immigration collection was developed to complement the Albury Regional Museum’s visiting exhibition, From the Steps of Bonegilla, opening at the Archives in July 2003. A new exhibition in the Treasures Gallery, The High Court of Australia: The First 100 Years, will open in October to coincide with the High Court centenary celebrations. The major Archives’ touring exhibition It’s a Dog’s Life: Animals in the Public Service will open in November 2003. Work has also begun on the major Archives’ touring exhibition Just Add Water: Schemes and Dreams of a Sunburnt Country, due to open in November 2004. A list of exhibitions held in 2002–03 is at Appendix K.
A Vision Splendid: How the Griffins Imagined Australia’s Capital
The Archives’ exhibition A Vision Splendid: How the Griffins Imagined Australia’s Capital opened in April 2002 and was extended by popular demand until September. The works of art that accompanied the winning entry by Walter Burley Griffin and Marion Mahony in the 1912 national capital design competition are fragile and conservation standards dictate that they are rarely displayed. The enormous popularity of the exhibition was reflected in both the positive visitor comments and the visitor numbers: by the time the exhibition closed over 22, 000 people had seen A Vision Splendid.
In April 2003, at a ceremony at the National Library of Australia, former Minister for Science Dr Barry Jones announced that 14 Griffin drawings, which featured in A Vision Splendid, as well as 17 landmark Australian constitutional documents, had been included on the prestigious Australian register for UNESCO’s Memory of the World program.
Beacons by the Sea: Stories of Australian Lighthouses
The Archives’ exhibition, Beacons by the Sea: Stories of Australian Lighthouses was opened by Ian Kiernan on 30 October 2002. The exhibition features original architectural drawings from the Archives’ collection and tells stories about the days when lighthouses were in operation around the entire Australian coastline. The Archives worked closely with the Australian National Maritime Museum, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, the Queensland Maritime Museum and the Eden Killer Whale Museum to develop the exhibition, and the Archives’ exhibits are complemented by loans of objects from these institutions.
A survey to gauge visitors’ reactions to Beacons by the Sea was undertaken. The result was that 53.3 per cent rated the exhibition as ‘excellent’ and 40.4 per cent as ‘very good’; 99 per cent considered the exhibition visually attractive; 91 per cent thought the themes and images were emotionally powerful; 95 per cent reported that they understood the connection between the items exhibited from the Archives’ collection and the themes explored in the exhibition; and 91 per cent agreed that the exhibition gave them a clearer understanding of the nature of the Archives’ collection. Of the 752 comments written in the visitors book, only three were negative.
Beacons by the Sea was enthusiastically sought as a travelling exhibition. The first venue for the tour was the Western Australian Maritime Museum in Fremantle, to be followed by 17 venues across Australia. The tour will be supported by a Visions of Australia Travelling Exhibitions Grant for $69 997.
Travelling exhibitions
Caught in the Rear View Mirror with Roy and HG was exhibited in five venues in the Northern Territory, New South Wales and Victoria. It has been travelling since 1999 during which time it has attracted over 88,000 visitors.
Wine! An Australian Social History commenced touring in 2002 and this year was exhibited in five venues in Queensland, South Australia, New South Wales and Victoria. Venues in areas that are related to the wine industry were especially keen to host the exhibition, and it was a great success at Wine Australia 2002 in Sydney in August 2002. This year Wine! attracted 26,187 of a total 38,946 visitors since the tour commenced. There are a further six venues in the tour which continues until 2004.
After negotiations between the National Archives of Australia and the Papua New Guinea Museum and Gallery, the Archives’ exhibition Eye to Eye: Observations of F E Williams, Anthropologist in Papua 1922–43 travelled to a final season in Port Moresby. Australian Deputy High Commissioner, Nicholas Coppel, representing the National Archives, launched the exhibition. This was followed by the official announcement of the donation of the exhibition to the people of Papua New Guinea by the National Archives of Australia. This gesture was warmly accepted by Soroi Eoe, Director of the Papua New Guinea Museum and Gallery.
(a) Figure includes visitors to the exhibition in the previous financial
(a) Figure includes visitors to the exhibition in the previous financial year.
Output 1.2.7 – Education programs and events
Quality: |
90 per cent of public customers rate services, programs and products as satisfactory |
Quantity: |
Number of public programs projects delivered and number of customers |
The education and events program in Canberra and across Australia continues to grow, attracting large numbers and positive feedback. Formal evaluations were undertaken for 11 events during 2002–03. Overall, 92 per cent of those surveyed rated the events as either meeting or exceeding expectations. Many respondents commented that they had high expectations of Archives’ events based on previous experiences. Most talks and presentations were filled to capacity and the events program continues to attract new audiences: an average of 41 per cent of those surveyed at events were participating in an Archives’ talk or tour for the first time.
 Year 10 Kadina High School students studying National Archives’ records during the Yorke Peninsula regional tour by Adelaide staff, October 2002. |
Education programs in the Canberra office were also evaluated and all respondents considered that the programs met or exceeded their expectations. Of particular significance this year was a campaign to provide greater access to The Constitutional Alphabet video as a classroom resource by making free copies available to interested teachers and librarians. In June 2002 teachers and librarians in all Australian secondary schools were invited to order a free copy of the video. Exceeding expectations, 2152 of the possible 3200 secondary schools in Australia responded, with orders received from both government and private schools in all States and Territories. The Archives has received many letters of commendation about the video’s educational merit.
A total of 247 programs and events were conducted in Canberra during the year, attracting 11,339 participants. One hundred per cent of visitors who attended the Touching Memories familiarisation session held in Canberra as part of Seniors’ Week events rated the event as having met or exceeded expectations. On 15 September 2002 the Archives held a joint event with the Canadian High Commission, Citizens’ Rights, Media Ownership and the Press, which invited high profile political journalists to engage in a facilitated discussion. Ninety-four per cent of attendees rated this event as meeting or exceeding expectations.
Exhibition events continued to draw capacity crowds and evaluations showed a 92 per cent satisfaction rate. Most noteworthy were the overwhelming response to all the events associated with A Vision Splendid: How the Griffins Imagined Australia’s Capital and the highly popular talks and tours accompanying Matthew Flinders: The Ultimate Voyage. On 15 January 2003, 600 grandparents and their grandchildren attended Grandkids’ Day which highlighted the Beacons by the Sea: Stories of Australian Lighthouses exhibition.
State offices presented 129 events and programs to 2707 attendees. Visits by Archives’ staff to rural centres in all States was a highlight this year, with presentations providing information about the Archives’ collection and the services that are offered to rural and remote centres through online programs.
ARC Linkage Grant for White Australia policy research project
The National Archives and Swinburne University were successful in securing an Australian Research Council Linkage Grant for the project Retrieving the Record: The White Australia Policy, Citizenship Education and New Applications for Archival Research. The project will take place over the next three years and will result in an historical analysis of the erosion of the White Australia policy after World War II; conceptual and practical models for developing the use of archival sources to enrich civics and citizenship education and broaden public understandings of political decision-making in controversial areas such as immigration; and the development of a case study and associated broadcasts and exhibition material.
Frederick Watson Fellowship
The 2002 Frederick Watson Fellowship was awarded to historian Garry Woodard, a Senior Fellow in the Department of Politics at the University of Melbourne. The Fellowship enabled Mr Woodard to complete a book about Australian foreign policy in the postwar era. In Canberra on 30 May 2003 he presented a lecture entitled Asian Alternative: Going to War in the 1960s.
Dr Klaus Neumann, the 2001 Frederick Watson Fellow, gave his third and final public lecture, Providing a Home for the Oppressed, on 11 July 2002 at Swinburne University, Melbourne.
Summer Scholarships
The Archives offers Summer Scholarships annually for undergraduate, honours or graduate diploma students to undertake research at the Archives and to learn more about the organisation. Scholarships were awarded in January 2003 to Catherine Arscott (University of Queensland) and Dieter Michel (University of Newcastle).
Family history events
On 6 April 2002 the Archives held the annual Family History Fair in Canberra. Staff from the National Archives, State Records New South Wales, the Australian War Memorial, the National Library of Australia, the Australian Capital Territory Heritage Library and the Australian National University presented sessions on family history records held by their institutions. Archives’ conservation staff provided advice on caring for personal papers, photographs, heirlooms and fire damaged treasures. The event attracted 620 people.
The Archives’ Perth Office, through University of Western Australia (UWA) Extension, presented a six-hour course over three evenings entitled Researching Your Family History at the National Archives. The participants were given time to undertake their own research with assistance from reference staff. UWA Extension advertises its courses, therefore widely promoting the National Archives to a large and diverse audience.