Library seeks ethnic facts

Press, 27 February 1989, Page 4

Library seeks ethnic facts

PA Wellington The Alexander Turnbull Library is seeking records of New Zealand’s different ethnic communities to provide a more complete picture of the country’s background. The library had collected material from the German, Greek, Italian and Chinese communities, but was interested in gathering more records, the chief librarian, Mr Jim Traue, said. Recently the library was presented with a complete collection of the New Zealand Chinese Growers’ Federation newspaper, a valuable contribution to background on that community.

Papers from individuals, such as letters or diaries, were collected along with records from organisations and societies, he said. Because New Zealand was such a young country there was ideal opportunity to collect historical

material before it was lost or destroyed. By talking to reseachers and watching overseas trends, the library had to predict what future historians would be interested in and collect material accordingly, he said. Several years ago it started to collect records on women. Now there was tremendous interest in the history of the family and women in New Zealand. Overseas researchers had become interested in collecting material on people’s characteristic activities as a way of understanding national character, he said.

Australians thought sport might have had an important role in shaping that country’s character, and there was growing interest in sporting organisations.

Anticipating the same interest in New Zealand, the Alexander Turnbull Library had begun collecting archives on sporting organisations.