Resources

Federation and Archives

Foster SG, Susan Marsden and Roslyn Russell Federation: the Guide to Records National Archives of Australia, Canberra, 1998.

In 2001, the Centenary of the Federation of the Australian colonies, the spotlight was on the heritage of the nation formed in 1901. Australian archives developed promotions, publications, displays and participated in fostering community activities.

Local history groups, schools, public libraries, family history societies and local councils also created exhibitions, displays and other activities which drew on archival collections large and small.

The National Archives of Australia publication Federation: the Guide to Records continues to prove an invaluable aid that lists holdings in repositories all around Australia.

The Centenary of Federation provided a unique challenge to all those who care for, and care about, the historical records of Australia. The Archives of Australia network played a crucial role in raising awareness of the importance of archives by fostering and developing Centenary celebrations around Australia.

See the National Archives' Federation resources.

Indigenous Australians

The Archives of Australia network is a resource for and about all Australian archives. It also provides a window to the world and so offers opportunities for the promotion and protection of collections of value to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. As the network builds, more websites for particular archival collections can be added.

Resources in this area include sites such as:

Aboriginal Studies Electronic Data Archive http://coombs.anu.edu.au/SpecialProj/ASEDA/ASEDA.html

Archive of Native Title Cases
http://www.arts.uwa.edu.au/AnthropWWW/archives/native_title/ntcases.htm

Records of National Cultural Significance: Indigenous Australians contains details and descriptions of records in more than 55 Australian institutions.
RTF (748kb) | Word (285kb) | PDF (122kb)

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CAPTION:
The world’s largest island nation, Australia’s vast coastline and splendid beaches made surf swimming popular, though risky. The surf life-saving reel, designed by Lyster Ormsby, was first demonstrated on 23 December 1906 at Bondi Beach. Two weeks later it was first used to rescue two schoolboys swept out in a rip - twenty-two years later one of those boys, Charles Kingsford-Smith, made the first aeroplane flight across the Pacific Ocean.