The 35th year of the Australian Joint Copying Project (original) (raw)

1984, Archives & Manuscripts

The 1982-83 official annual report of the Australian Joint Copying Project has been amended and slightly expanded in order to give readers an insight into one year' s activities. In April 1981 the Review of Commonwealth Government Functions Committee recommended severe reductions in the staff of the Australian High Commission in London. Among the proposed victims were the two officers who worked full-time for the Australian Joint Copying Project. In the months that followed most of the activities of the Project had to be curtailed, while in Australia archivists, librarians and historians urged the Government to reject this proposal of the 'Razor Gang'. After a long period of uncertainty, a reprieve was announced and the A. J.C.P. was able to resume the task which it had been carrying out continuously since 1948. In view of the threatened dissolution of the A.J.C.P. in 1981. it is satisfying to report that the Project has regained its momentum. In fact, 1982/83 was an exceptionally productive year. On the searching side, some useful classes were examined at the Public Record Office, while collections were listed at two of the national libraries, several county record offices and university libraries, and some distinguished learned societies. On the filming side, a total of 365 reels were produced, comprising 199 reels in the Public Record Office Series and 166 reels in the Miscellaneous Series. This was possibly a record figure, as the Project has always aimed at about 200 reels a year. There was also a fairly good balance between the different categories of records filmed-political, legal, military, convict, emigrant, shipping, missionary and scientific. At the Public Record Office, where records are now open to 1953. the A.J.C.P. has moved decisively into the twentieth century. Most of the classes searched or filmed during the year contained relatively modern records. They included Admiralty papers, dealing particularly with Australian defence in the inter-war years (Adm. 1 16), despatches and papers concerning the involvement of the Dominions in World War I (C.O. 616). Dominions Office Confidential Prints (D.O. 114), and private