The Tasmanian Archives and Heritage Office (TAHO) is the repository for all Tasmanian government records which are of permanent or long-term value, but the Office also collects records of community organisations, businesses, societies, and churches which operate in Tasmania. We do this because the correspondence, minutes, reports, photographs publications and other documents that officers, members directors, employees or volunteers have produced over the years are the heart of an organisation's memory and provide evidence of its achievements. These records are important to an organisation for administrative, legal, fiscal, and public relations purposes but this history is also important to the Tasmanian community. When an organisation's records are deposited with TAHO they become, like the records of our governments, part of our State's 'archives' where the information helps us to explain our present by understanding our past.
What records to deposit?
The records selected for permanent preservation will be those that best illustrate the purpose, activities and policies of the organisation and have long-term value to the community. This may include, for example correspondence, reports, architectural drawings, minutes of meetings, constitution and articles of incorporation, membership lists, registers, newsletters and other publications of the organisation, scrapbooks, photo albums, films, videos and audiotapes. If you are unsure about the value of any of your organisation's records it is recommended that you contact this Office before destroying them.
If you are considering depositing a large quantity of organisational records with TAHO we suggest that you contact us before weeding, discarding or splitting-up the records as their research value may be diminished by these processes.
If your organisation has decided to deposit its records with TAHO, the person responsible will need to contact the Berriedale repository to arrange for the transfer.
At this stage we should be given as much information as possible about the organisation and its records. A Deposit Agreement form must be completed to establish the terms of the deposit and provide clear directions with respect to ownership, custody, control and use of the records. You will also need to consider what your organisation may want done with any material which TAHO does not consider appropriate for permanent preservation. All these issues can be discussed with staff when completing the Deposit Agreement form.
Organisations wishing to deposit their records in TAHO are strongly encouraged to donate them as an outright gift. This clarifies the transfer of ownership and therefore makes the care, management, and access to the archives easier. If the organisation considers it is necessary to retain ownership, TAHO may, in exceptional circumstances, be willing to accept them as an indefinite loan subject to agreed conditions. These conditions may include charges to your organisation for storage costs or conservation.
In some circumstances donations of records may be able to be made under the provisions of the national Cultural Gifts Program, which provides in specified cases incentives through the Australian taxation system. Our staff can provide advice on this program.
Records deposited in TAHO normally become open for public access once they have been described and formally listed. However organisations have the option to restrict access to their archives for a certain period of time. The maintenance of confidentiality or the protection of privacy are the usual reasons for such restrictions.
The copying or publication of archives deposited with TAHO is undertaken in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968. When arranging the deposit, TAHO may seek to transfer ownership of copyright as the management of copyright issues many years after the donation can be extremely complex.
Records deposited in the TAHO are stored in a secure repository which is protected against fire and unauthorised access. The storage areas are air-conditioned with appropriate temperature and humidity controls to protect the archives. Our conservators can restore documents in need of repair and microfilming is an option for records that are likely to be heavily used or are already in a fragile condition.
The Commonwealth Cultural Gifts Program provides potential incentives through deductions within the taxation system for depositors of records in the TAHO.
