Parliamentary archives online
NZPA report:
Parliament has started digitising journals dating back to the 1860s, with the information to be made available online.
The project, to be launched in Parliament by Speaker Lockwood Smith today, involves 24 volumes of the historic Appendices to the Journals of the House of Representatives (A to J), covering the 1860s and 1870s.
The pilot volumes include 27,219 pages, 1807 reports and 158 foldouts comprising maps, plans and tables, and will be searchable online.
Very very cool. History should be accessible, and this will make it more so.
The journals cover a significant period of history including the land wars and confiscation of land, the discovery of gold and influx of migrants, Premier Sir Julius Vogel’s public works and immigration programme involving a mass government-assisted immigration scheme and the building of railways and roads, and the abolition of the provinces and strengthening of central government.
Parliament’s historian Dr John Martin said the volumes were “hidden treasures”. In all, 600 volumes will eventually be digitised, with progress dependent on funding availability.
Just get rid of a couple of MPs to pay for it 
August 19th, 2010 at 12:03 pm
About time. I was sick of cherry-picking piecemeal and doing stuff only I and a bunch of friends in my department at graduate school liked. Besides, two years of effort with http://www.ibiblio.org/ahkitj/section27/ and all I got was a handful of documents, librarians chasing me that didn’t know NZ copyright law and wouldn’t take a differing view for an answer, and a whole bunch of what felt like OOS from using desktop scanners and photocopiers.
I remember trying to suggest this sort of project to Parliamentary Library in 2005 or 2006, after offering to do it piecemeal myself with their help, after having issues finding a scannable copy of the Erebus report in other libraries, so it’s a good thing that Parliament have decided to do it themselves.
Speaking of which, they should really fast forward to the Erebus royal commission first. IMHO.
August 19th, 2010 at 1:50 pm
A brilliant, much-needed initiative. But why didn’t they start working backwards? The journals of our more recent history that aren’t already digitally available are, surely, of more interest to more people than those from the 1800s?
August 19th, 2010 at 2:24 pm
Aah rex, best leave the recent past until the messy smelly rotting bits have dried out and turned to dust leaving the nice clean bones to be rummaged through.
August 19th, 2010 at 2:41 pm
And about time!!
This has been crying out to be done for years – thank you Lockwood (or whoever was ultimately responsible)
As a field-specific researcher who lives in a small rural town with a Public library who has never heard of these publications, not being able to access the A to J’s (aka AJHR’s) has been so frustrating – and extremely limiting. To get any information I have to visit the local Uni’, which is effectively a day’s round trip. On-line will make things soooo much easier.
Hopefully it won’t take too long to copy-off the 1880-1900 period (If wishes were horses etc, etc) . One can but wait.
Money, the project needs MORE money . .
August 19th, 2010 at 3:06 pm
Komata “Money, the project needs MORE money…” User pars Komata, user pays………….
August 19th, 2010 at 6:00 pm
You can access them here http://www.natlib.govt.nz/collections/digital-collections/atojs-online