Australian Joint Copying Project (AJCP)(Microform Collection 994.005 A924)The Flinders University Library has purchased the complete AJCP microfilm set with funds from the J.M. Main Bequest. Individual records, including reel numbers, for AJCP material are searchable via the Library's Voyager Information System. This project is the result of collaboration between the Mitchell Library and the National Library, and started in 1945. The aim of the project was to microfilm all the records in the Public Record Office (PRO) in London which related to Australia. In 1960, the project was broadened to include private papers and material relating to businesses, missionary societies, county records and other miscellaneous material, all relating to Australia and our region. The project was completed in 1993, and the complete collection contains approximately 10,000 microfilm reels of material dating from 1560 to 1975. For purposes of arrangement and description, the AJCP film is divided into two series: the PRO series and the Miscellaneous Series. Public Records Office (PRO) SeriesWithin the PRO Series, the records of the Colonial Office have been predominant, joined more recently by the records of the Dominion Office. Almost 40 per cent of all AJCP film is taken up by the dispatches, correspondence, letterbooks and registers, dating from 1788 to 1951, of these two departments. In addition to the huge classes dealing specifically with the Australian, New Zealand and Pacific colonies, film has been acquired of many general classes referring to such subjects as colonial appointments, honours, emigration, overseas settlement schemes, the involvement of the Dominions in the World Wars and imperial policies and relations generally. Other departments in the PRO which have been the subject of filming include:
Miscellaneous Series (M Series)Collections of private records filmed as part of the Miscellaneous Series range from those of the British Library and the National Libraries of Wales, Scotland and Ireland to university libraries, county record offices, museums, missionary societies, business archives and papers held by private families and individuals. The collection also contains official records of various kinds, including records now held in German and Dutch repositories. Filming in the M Series began in the late 1950s, and is especially strong in the records of missionary organisations, of trading and land companies, and of learned societies and institutions. In addition, efforts have been made to include material held in private hands, especially that documenting the activities of individuals, from politicians and Governors to small farmers, emigrants and convicts. Handbook(Central Library Reference 994.005 A924h)A multi-volume handbook is available for the AJCP, allowing researchers to comprehend the context of particular records and to reach relevant material more quickly. The most concise summary of the microfilm is provided by Part 1, "Shelf list of copying in the Public Record Office, London; Shelf list of the Miscellaneous Series". At the detailed level, Parts 2-7 and 9-10 are class and piece lists for PRO records combined with a description of the contents of individual reels. Part 10 also provides descriptions down to file level. Part 8 provides a description of each Miscellaneous Series collection. The Handbook is held in the Central Library Reference Collection at 994.005 A924h. (Microform Collection 994.005 A924) |