Media Releases

MEDIA RELEASE - Wednesday, 12 November 2003

Community group preserves local heritage - Albury City Libraries

Albury City Libraries have received $3500 to preserve heritage items with the assistance of the 2003 Community Heritage Grants, an Australia wide program to preserve documentary heritage items.

The grants were announced by Federal Minister for the Arts and Sport, Senator Rod Kemp at a ceremony held at the National Library of Australia.

Grants of up to $8 000 are awarded annually to community organisations such as museums, libraries, archives and historical and genealogical societies to preserve locally owned, but nationally significant, documentary heritage materials including letters, diaries, maps, photographs, film/video and oral history recordings.

The grant will be used to reformat oral history held on 70 reel-to-reel tapes, consisting of 37 individual interviews or 65 hours of interview time. The Albury City and Lavington libraries have developed a local studies collection, amounting to 15,000 items and have traditionally housed documents and other materials such as books, tapes and family history resources

Senator Kemp said, "The Community Heritage Grants program is a major national initiative because it represents a commitment by Australians to recording and conserving their local heritage. 2003 marks the 10th anniversary of the program. In that time 295 projects have received more than $1 million in funding."

This year fifty community organisations were awarded a total of $219 000 to preserve diverse collections that make up Australia's wealth of documentary heritage.

The program is jointly funded and supported by the Australian Government through the Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts, the National Library of Australia, the National Archives of Australia, the Australian Film Commission and the Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs.

Jan Fullerton, Director-General National Library of Australia said," The Community Heritage Grant program is one of the most comprehensive annual initiatives that the Library is involved in.

"Together with our partners we are able to work at the community level where some of the most vitally interesting material is located and where the most active work occurs, which is often undertaken by volunteers."

Media enquiries:

Yvonne Kennedy
Director Communications and Marketing
Telephone: 02 6262 1353; 0411 753 891;
Email: ykennedy@nla.gov.au

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