Trek 11:
Understanding the publication process
Trek 12:
More about databases
Trek 13:
Finding statistics
Trek 14:
Finding Bills, Acts of Parliament, Regulations and Hansard
Trek 15:
Finding law case reports
Trek 16:
Finding theses
Trek 17:
Who has cited this author? Citation indexes
Trek 18:
Keeping up-to-date
Trek 20:
Managing your information
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Have you ever wondered where people who write biographies, family histories or the histories of towns, companies or political parties find their information?
As well as conducting their own interviews, researchers often use letters, manuscripts and records that are never published, which they often find in special collections.
This Trek introduces you to some sources of unpublished information and how you can find them. Delve on!
What is unpublished information?
What are archives?
Finding archives on the Web
Getting access to archives
Helpful hints
Information that is not published, generally made available or sold to the public takes many forms. Here are some examples:
Unpublished information can be difficult to find, although, with developments in image software, material is now appearing on the World Wide Web.
topArchives are special, organised collections of unpublished material. They often have special storage conditions and expert staff to organise and preserve the items and guidelines about what they collect and who can see the material.
Organisations and members of the community often donate their own 'archives' to add to the information about social, community and political life that is collected for researchers and future generations.
Archives can be found in government institutions, universities or private organisations. Here are some examples:
The John Curtin Prime Ministerial Library and Electronic Research Archive
This archive at Curtin University of Technology collects all types of material about John Curtin, the Prime Minister of Australia during WWII. Some images of letters, newspaper clippings, photographs and government documents can be viewed on the ERA database.
See the links below to access ERA.
LISWA (Library and Information Service of Western Australia)
Western Australian Documentary Heritage Services are found in the J.S. Battye Library. Together with the Archival and Records Management Services of the State Records Office, the Battye Library is the source of valuable original material, including a large collection of old photographs of Western Australia and its people.
See links for access to LISWA.
The Archives of Australia Network
This Web site links you to the National Archives of Australia and other Australian Commonwealth and State Archives. You can search their online indexes (e.g. by a person's or family's name) and find information on whether and how you can see the actual documents. See the links for access to The Archives of Australia Network.
Pandora Archive
This project at the National Library of Australia is identifying and keeping Australian online publications such as electronic journals, organisational sites, government publications and 'ephemera' (small items of information). See the links.
The Archives of Australia Network Web site (see links) will link you to Australian and international archive and manuscript information, including The Directory of Archives in Australia.
Another way to search for archives on a topic is to use an Australian or other Web search engine and search on the term 'archives' with terms for the topic and country. Here are some examples of search terms:
| film | archives | australia |
| immigration | archives | australia ireland |
If you find links to an archive, remember that although you may be able to search their index, you may still need to contact them to see the real documents.
It is always wise to check an archive's Web site or contact them directly for instructions on how to access their material. Do this well before you intend to visit the archive.
They might ask you to prove that you have a genuine research interest and even then, some information may be restricted. For example:
Some sensitive documents such as political or defense papers may have embargos on them, meaning that they cannot be viewed for a certain period, usually 30 or 50 years, or during a person's lifetime.
Some information has cultural, ethnic or personal sensitivity. For example, photos of indigenous people may not be able to be viewed by their own groups.
Corporate archives may not allow you access. Commercial information could help competitors.
Documents which have been the subject of court cases, such as libel cases, could be forbidden from being viewed by the public by order of a court.
The items may be too fragile to handle.
Archive etiquette requires that researchers use pencils, not pens, to avoid staining valuable documents. Some archives also expect researchers to wear gloves.
State libraries have guides and classes on how to research your family's history or genealogy. Your local public library will have books on genealogy and many Web sites are devoted to this area of research.
Do as much index searching as you can on the Web. It will save you time.
You may not even need to visit an archive! Some provide search facilities on the Web and once you have identified the document or photograph you need, you can order a copy online or by 'phone or letter. The National Archives of Australia and the Australian War Memorial offer this service.
Test your 'archives awareness' in the Quiz. Then, why not learn tips on organising your information in Trek 20 ?
The John Curtin Prime Ministerial Library and Electronic Research Archive
LISWA: Library and Information Service of Western Australia
The InfoTrekkPlus team welcomes your comments
