How long have you been the St Margaret’s AGS Archivist?
The Archive Centre was established in 2005, thanks to generous assistance from the Old Girls’ Association, and I have been the School Archivist since then. Before that, I held the position of Head of the Library for 23 years and was also a student for six years, so I’ve spent many years absorbing the history of St Margaret’s. I also look after the archives of the Sisters of the Society of the Sacred Advent in Community House.
What would be the oldest piece of history / information in the archives?
Probably the oldest items are four photographs from 1904/5 taken at Eton High School at Nundah. The first Enrolment Register dates from 1906; unfortunately the older enrolment record from Nundah has not survived so we have no record of the students who attended the school between 1895 and 1905. Another early paper document is the 1908 Annual Report, handwritten by the second Headmistress, Miss Juliet Lyon. We also have a copy of the first school magazine, published in 1910. It was originally called the Eton High School Magazine; the following year the name changed to The Link.
The earliest uniform item is a blazer from 1916, embroidered with a rowing pocket awarded to Emily Gore. Our earliest middy uniform is from 1951 – apart from the starched collar, it looks very similar to what our students wear today.
Some other significant items include:
A silver Eton High School badge. It is at least 110 years old and one of the very few items we have from the early days of the school.
The engraved trowel used by Bishop Le Fanu to lay the Foundation Stone of the first permanent school building (West Wing) in 1927.
The McWhirter Cup for lifesaving. St Margaret’s first won the cup in 1933 and then another 24 times before the competition ceased in 1989. As we were the winning school in the final year, the Cup has remained here.
Thelma Gibson’s (School Captain 1925) World War 2 medals. Thelma served with the Army nursing service in Singapore in 1941 and returned in 1945 to assist with the repatriation of Australian prisoners-of-war.
And the most unusual treasure? A set of ‘jingle bells’ used by the 1951 Kindergarten class for their Christmas concert.
What are some of the challenges you face?
Mostly people think of archives as photographs and documents which are straightforward to file in standard albums and folders. But much of the collection consists of ‘objects’ – uniforms, badges, crockery, banners, trophies, architectural models – all different sizes and shapes. These are a challenge to store appropriately so that they are preserved for the future.
Photographs can be frustrating. Originally the school’s photographs were just put into envelopes or boxes with no identifying information so it’s been a long process trying to verify dates. Names are a bonus!
What sort of cataloguing system do you use? How do you find things?!
We use a searchable database program similar to a library catalogue. The record for each item includes things such as a description, significance, history, the name of the donor / provenance and its location in the archives.
How do you think technology has helped to preserve the school’s history?
Digitising the photo collection has ensured that the photographic history of the school will be preserved for future generations, as well as making it more accessible. There is no need to handle precious original photos once they’ve been scanned. Using photo editing software means we can often produce a copy that is even better than the original. With the help of Old Girl volunteers, all hard copy photographs from 1904 to 2000 have been scanned and we are now tackling slides and negatives. The volunteers have also entered all the records from the first Enrolment Register into a searchable database. Many of the early, and very fragile, documents have also been scanned. A project for the future is to digitise all editions of The Link.
What are the ideal storage / environmental conditions for archived items?
The best conditions for preservation are dust and pest free, consistent temperature and humidity, and low light levels. Where possible, individual items are placed into envelopes or folders and then into boxes, giving another layer of protection.
The Archive Centre has a collection of memorabilia and uniforms on display, and these need to be rotated every few months so they are not damaged by exposure to light and the environment.
How do you handle archived objects / records?
The archivists’ traditional white cotton gloves are good for handling objects but for textiles and paper items, nitrile gloves have a better grip. And gloves give better protection to the archivist’s hands when dealing with crumbling paper and rusting paper clips! Fragile photos and paper documents are stored flat in clear archival enclosures so they can be viewed without having to touch them. Textiles are wrapped or layered with tissue before storing in archive quality boxes.
Is there anything specific that you would like to ‘find’ out there in the St Margaret’s community that you don’t currently have on record.
Top of the list is the missing statue! It was a large statue of a Greek or Roman goddess, placed in the middle of Circular Drive by the Petrie family when they built Mooloomburram in 1886. It disappeared without trace sometime between 1925 and 1930.
A more hopeful quest is to locate photos from the school’s first overseas trip during the 1969/70 school holidays when Sister Jean Marie and Sister Joan escorted a small group of girls to Europe. The 1970 Link has a comprehensive report of the trip, but we don’t have any photos of the adventure.
If you would like to contact Bronwyn Perry, you can do so on email: bperry@stmargarets.qld.edu.au