A digital version of this newsletter can be found here.
Introducing our Board
Chair: Andrew Morrison
Vice-Chair: Heather Bidzinski
Finance and Grants: Katrin Nielsdottir
Secretary: Jackson Anderson
Digital Initiatives: Jackson Anderson and Katie Lynch
Education: Al Thorleifson
Indigenous Relations: Carmen Miedema and Mary Horodyski
Information and Outreach: Corser du Pont
Membership: Carmen Miedema and Heather Bidzinski
Student Member-at-large: Blake Mueller
Call for New Board Member
Special Initiatives Member-at-Large: We are seeking a Member-at-Large to assist in organizing the Manitoba Day event. This can be a shared position.
Committee Reports
Digital Initiatives: The DI Team ran a workshop on Manitoba Archival Information Network (MAIN) for the University of Manitoba Archival Studies Class. We continue to assist members with renewing or starting membership online. See Renewing and Starting Membership in this newsletter.
Education and Advisory Services: The Committee has organized an Archiving Email Workshop. See Upcoming Events for more information.
Finance and Grants: No report this month.
Indigenous Relations: We appreciate the participants who came to our first "Archivists' Outing" at the WAG on March 18. Special thanks to AMA member Nicole Fletcher for her insightful tour of the Robert Houle "Red is Beautiful" exhibit and for giving us a behind-the-scenes look at the archives and vault. We had some thoughtful consideration of how archives can support decolonization and the important role of provenance in these efforts. We look forward to our next outing!
Information and Outreach: The I&O Committee met on March 8th. The Committee has provisionally scheduled the AMA Trivia Night for Wednesday, April 26th. The AMA currently has 259 followers on Twitter and 170 on Instagram. Please send any Advisory Services requests you may have to advocacy@mbarchives.ca.
Membership Committee: No report this month.
Student Member-at-Large: No report this month.
Renewing and Starting Membership online
A reminder that membership renewals are due on April 1, 2023. Please follow the instructions below to renew online. Please contact the AMA at ama1@mts.net or Digital Initiatives at webmaster@mbarchives.ca if you have any difficulties.
Membership renewals can be completed by logging into the website clicking on "View profile" in the top right-hand corner of the page. In your profile, click on the "Renew to [date]" button. Update your information in the fields that appear as needed and click the "Update and next" button. Review your information and click the "Pay online button" to finalize your renewal in PayPal.
Upcoming Events
Email Archiving at the University of British Columbia: What We’ve Learned – Thursday - April 27th, 2:00 pm
Hosted by Andy Resto and Barbara Towell, this presentation will go over the work of the UBC Email Archiving Working Group over the past year. First we will discuss what we learned from conducting research through an environmental scan and a literature review, followed by an outline of our email archiving goals. This will include a discussion of our proposed workflows, email management tools, and policy development. Throughout we will discuss challenges that we have faced, and will end the session with an open Q&A.
News from our Members
Conservation Treatment of the First Winnipeg City Council Minutes, 1874-1875
The following comes from Sarah Ramsden of the City of Winnipeg Archives
With financial assistance from the Heritage Grants Program (Province of Manitoba), the City of Winnipeg Archives worked with Conservator Jane Dalley to treat the first Winnipeg City Council Minutes. This project involved treating the City’s first Minute Book, its index, as well as the rough minutes of the first Council meeting that were recorded and stored separately. All of these records showed various signs of deterioration, were extremely fragile, and could not be handled without risking further damage. Because of their fragility, staff restricted access to these records years ago, offering researchers microfilm copies as an alternative. However, without being able to read the rough minutes of the first Council meeting, which were in pieces, their precise contents remained a mystery.
During treatment, the records were cleaned, stabilized, and agents of deterioration were removed. The results were astounding. In addition to extending their life, the treatment has increased the artefactual value of these records, restored them to a condition where they can be handled safely by staff, and recovered missing information. It is exciting to say that, in advance of Winnipeg’s 150th anniversary in 2024, staff can remove the access restrictions to the first City Council Minutes. To aid in their preservation, however, staff will continue to reduce the amount of handling, encouraging users to use digitized copies and transcriptions of the first Council Minute Book available online.
Read more about the project on the AMA’s blog here.
Updates on City of Winnipeg Archives
The City of Winnipeg has approved funding to renovate the City of Winnipeg Archives’ previous home at Carnegie Library. For more information, read the articles and announcements below.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/carnegie-library-renovation-winnipeg-archives-1.6774058
https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/2023/03/19/new-life-breathed-into-carnegie-library
https://www.winnipeg.ca/city-governance/budget-finance/multi-year-budget-2023-update
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/winnipeg-budget-2023-passes-1.6787803
Job Opportunity!
The University of Winnipeg Archives is hiring an Archives Assistant for the Indigenous Course Requirement Collection. Click the link below to apply!
https://www.northstarats.com/University-of-Winnipeg/Indigenous-Course-Requirement-Collection-Archives-Assistant-Library-Term/76094
Shelley Sweeny awarded Platinum Jubilee Medal
Text from Winnipeg Free Press and the Government of Manitoba
Shelley Sweeney has been awarded a Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee medal. The criteria for the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal (Manitoba) is broad. Recipients can be of all ages and from all walks of life, provided that they have made a contribution to society. Nominator Dr. Jon Gerrard (MLA River Heights) said “Shelley Sweeney, champion in the preservation of Manitoba’s history, was chosen for her contribution to the promotion of Manitoba’s cultural fabric and diversity by expanding the acquisition of private archives at the University of Manitoba Archives and through her work in preserving records related to reconciliation.”
Above: Dr. Shelley Sweeney receives Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee medal at the Manitoba legislative building in Winnipeg, December 19, 2022. Photographer: Richard Condie.
UMASC Documentary
Last year the University of Manitoba Archives and Special Collections produced a short documentary about A.H. Reginal Buller's role in the history of the University of Manitoba. This film was based on the exhibition "’He was the Very Model of a Modern Research Scientist:’ Reginald Buller and the Founding of the University of Manitoba". Click here to watch the full documentary.
Archival Webinars
Backlog Webinars
Antiracism & Decolonization in Archives & Records Management Series
NCTR Dialogue: Land Back
Call for Volunteers
We are always looking for members to join our committees. Volunteering with the AMA is an excellent way to network with archivists, build skills, and shape the future of archives in Manitoba. If you are interested, please contact the Chair, or a committee chair, at one of the email addresses listed on this page https://mbarchives.ca/contact
News for the newsletter?
Does your archive have a new grant or a new hire? Or do you have a collection you want to promote? Send your news to ama1@mts.net and we will include it in an upcoming newsletter.
