Museums of History (formerly the State Archives and Records Authority of New South Wales) was established in 1961 by the Archives Act, No 46 of 1960 and is responsible for collecting, managing and preserving New South Wales Government records. In 1999 the State Records Act 1998 came into effect, replacing the Archives Act 1960. Prior to 1961, archives were kept at the Public Library of New South Wales. In mid-2012 the search room at The Rocks was closed and all material and staff were based at the Western Sydney Records Centre.
In 1999, the State Records Act 1998 came into effect and Archives Authority of New South Wales became known as State Records Authority of New South Wales.
On 25th October 2016, a change in name in the State Records Act 1998 (the Act) was approved and the organisation’s name changed to State Archives and Records Authority of New South Wales.
In 2023 State Archives merged with Sydney Living Museums and became Museums of History NSW.
The New South Wales State Archives Collection dates from 1788. It contains records created and used by the New South Wales State Government. In this collection, there are records relating to state wards, child welfare, children’s institutions, disability services, child and youth migration, juvenile justice and adoption.
The NSW State Archives Collection is organised into Series or ‘groups’ of records, then Items or ‘individual’ records. The types of records include paper files and documents, correspondence, film, photographs, sound recordings, objects, books and much more.
The State Records Authority website includes access catalogues, guides, finding aids, fact sheets, indexes of names and places, and browse options to help users find records in the Collection.
From
June 1961
To
Current
Alternative Names
State Records NSW
Archives Office of NSW
State Archives
State Records
State Records Authority of New South Wales
State Archives NSW
State Archives and Records NSW
Archives Authority of New South Wales
Museums of History
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