[Pambu home] [newsletters
home]
Coombs Building
Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies
The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 0200 Australia
Telephone: (61) (2) 6125 2521 Fax: (61) (2) 6125 0198
E-mail: pambu@coombs.anu.edu.au
URL: http://sunsite.anu.edu.au/spin/RSRC/PMB
Series 5, No. 7
June 1998
1998 marks the thirtieth anniversary of the establishment of the Pacific Manuscripts Bureau. In the past thirty years, the Bureau has produced over 2600 rolls of microfilm of material relating to the Pacific, preserving it for the benefit of future generations of Pacific Islanders and scholars.
The genesis of the Bureau dates back to March 1967 with the publication of Harry Maude's paper, "The Documentary Basis for Pacific Studies: a report on progress and desiderata". This paper attempted to classify and assess archives and manuscripts relating to the Pacific; it also recommended the establishment of a Pacific Islands Manuscripts Clearing Centre at the Australian National University. It became the direct catalyst for the formation of the Pacific Manuscripts Bureau in 1968 and influenced its agenda for almost twenty years.
Operating within the auspices of the Department of Pacific History at the ANU, the Bureau's original purpose was to locate archives, manuscripts and rare publications relating to the Pacific - copying them onto microfilm. In the early years, it focused on microfilming older, at risk records such as those of the Oceania Marist Province Archives (OMPA); the Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga; and the New England Whaling Logs. As such, it concentrated mainly on narratives of early contact and conquest in the Pacific Islands. Robert Langdon headed the Bureau from 1968 to 1986. Under his guidance, the Bureau produced 998 separate items for the PMB Manuscript Series of films and 389 items for its Printed Document Series of films. [See Robert Langdon, 'Pros and Cons of its Continuance after 15 April 1986', unpublished report, pg 7] He also produced a range of substantial publications on Pacific archives and documents.
Although thirty years have passed, the Bureau has remained committed to those early priorities and aspirations. However, as the European presence in the Pacific Islands has declined and many Pacific Islands have achieved independence, the Bureau's agenda has changed. In his final report for the Bureau in 1986, Robert Langdon wrote that 'history is created in the Pacific Islands every day, and as more and more people (with increasing populations) take part in the creation and recording of it, new caches of documents of potential value to future Pacific historians and other scholars are constantly coming into existence.' [Robert Langdon, 'Pros and Cons of its Continuance after 15 April 1986', unpublished report, pg 8]. In the 1990s under the guidance of Mr Ewan Maidment, the Bureau has begun developing new microfilming projects aimed at the archives of contemporary Pacific organisations: records documenting the cultural and political aspirations of the independent island states and those relating to current economic and political issues affecting the islands. Records relating to the coups in Fiji and to the war in Bougainville and to Pacific trade unions have been targeted for immediate filming. I am proud to be associated with an organisation that has done so much to record and preserve past and contemporary Pacific life and culture.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those people and institutions who have supported the Bureau in the past - particularly during its period of uncertainty in the mid-1990s. Special thanks must be extended to Robert Langdon and Ewan Maidment, their staff and the various Management Committees under whose leadership the Bureau has flourished. Thanks must also be extended to the Bureau's seven sponsoring libraries; without their guidance and encouragement, the Bureau would not have endured this long. I look forward to their continuing support in the years ahead. The Bureau relies on the goodwill and friendship of a network of scholars, archivists and supporters within and beyond the Pacific. It is timely to pay tribute to their role in maintaining the Bureau as a uniquely international and co-operative archival project.
Professor Brij V. Lal
Chairperson
Pacific Manuscripts Bureau
May 1998
The Bureau released 115 rolls of microfilm to members in April. This release consists of microfilms completed in 1997 and is comprised of material from PNG, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Fiji, New Zealand, Banaba Island and Australia. A detailed list of the release is on pages 12-14 of this issue of Pambu.
Mr Peter Grimshaw, Treasurer of the PMB since 1968, retired at the end of 1997 to take up a position as Visitor in the Department of Pacific and Asian History at the ANU. He is in the process of writing several books based on his experiences in Papua New Guinea. His encouragement and support of the PMB will be greatly missed.
Ms Patricia Jackson, a student from the Republic of Kiribati, spent three productive weeks in the Bureau in April and early May of this year organising and filming the Sir Maori Kiki papers lent to the Bureau by Lady Kiki. Ms Jackson is doing a Graduate Diploma in Archives and Records at Edith Cowan University; her work at the Bureau went towards the practical assessment of the course.
The PMB took part in the organisation of
the annual Pacific History Workshop on 5 and 6 December last
year, chairing its Resources Session. 'Alopi Sione Latukefu from
the South Pacific Information Network (SPIN); Mr Alan Ventress
from the Mitchell Library; Stephanie Boyle and Kate McLoughlin
from the National Film and Sound Archives; David Kaus from the
National Museum of Australia; and Margaret Dent from the National
Library of Australia spoke about their institutional holdings.
The PMB produced a Resources Kit detailing major Pacific holdings
in eighteen museums and libraries across Australia; this was
distributed to participants at the end of the Workshop. The PMB
plans to continue participating in Pacific conferences, including
the Pacific History Association Conference in Honiara in July.
In December last year the final stage of the PMB's microfilming project based at the NZ Methodist Connexional Archives in Auckland was completed. Working with Mrs Verna Mossong, the Archivist, and with Mrs Nancy Carter, the PMB brought up to date its microfilming of the records of the NZ Methodist Overseas Mission relating to the Solomon Islands. The minutes of the Overseas Mission Board were microfilmed to 1972 and the correspondence of the Chairman of the Solomon Islands Mission to 1965. Also included in the microfilming were the diaries of Sisters Effie Harkness, Ada Lee, Merle Farland and Merle Carter; the diaries of Rev A. A. Bensley and Rev Clarence Luxton; and the diaries of several Solomon Islanders associated with the Methodist Church in the Solomons: Joseph Alenge, Job Tozaka, David Voeta, John Kevisi and Ishmael Ngatu.
While in Auckland I visited the University of Auckland Library to microfilm Dr Peter Metcalf's Masters thesis on the Port Moresby Workers' Association, a key contemporary document on the development of trade unions in PNG, written in the Anthropology Department at the University of Auckland in 1968. Bill Gammage had recommended its filming, and Dr Metcalf and the University of Auckland Library kindly provided permission.
Travelling to Dunedin, Ian and Lala Frazer put me up (or put up with me) for a second time, so that I could continue microfilming Dr Frazer's collection of Solomon Islands newspapers. Parts of the Solomons Toktok were filmed, filling in some of the gaps in the period 1977-1982 which were not available at the Solomon Islands National Archives. The PMB microfilmed the Toktok to the end of its publication in 1992, although some gaps remain. We know that some of these remaining gaps can be filled from the holdings of the USP Libraries in Suva and Honiara.
Early issues of the Solomon Star, Nos.1-256, 1982-1987, were also filmed at Ian Frazer's place, with only one gap (No. 12, 13 Aug 1982). There was not sufficient time to continue microfilming this title. Dr Frazer's collection of Solomon Islands election manifestoes was also microfilmed during this visit.
Ralph Regenvanu, the Director of the Vanuatu Cultural Centre, had asked the PMB to investigate the possibility of copying archival material relating to Vanuatu held in the Hocken Archives, at the University of Otago, in Dunedin. In particular Mr Regenvanu was interested in the papers of Rev. Peter Milne. I surveyed and listed the Milne Papers. However, as Professor Gordon Parsonson is compiling an annotated edition of the Milne journal for publication, there is no necessity for the PMB to microfilm them.
Back in Suva in March this year the
Bureau picked up an ongoing project aimed at microfilming the
most vulnerable parts of the archives of the Methodist Church in
Fiji. On a previous visit the Bureau had copied the circuit
reports to 1898 and some circuit minute books, including some of
the oldest and most fragile documents in the archive (PMB 1093).
During this trip, I microfilmed the minutes and journals of the
annual meeting (Synod) of the Fiji District, together with the
main series of surviving 19th century correspondence:
| PMB 1138 | METHODIST MISSIONARY SOCIETY OF AUSTRALASIA, Fiji District: Annual Synod minutes & journals, 1854-1945, together with misc. corresp., 1869-1899. 4 reels. (Restricted access.) |
It should be noted that the following series are being considered
for filming on subsequent visits:
| F/6/1899+ | Circuit reports 1899-1944 |
| Section 3 | Circuit annual reports and other remaining 19th century circuit records (many of which are in a fragile state) |
| F/4/4(G) | Miscellaneous Synod papers |
| F/7/(a), (b), etc. | Fiji District Committee minutes of meeting & papers, 1917-1945 |
| F/1/1900+ | Fiji District correspondence with mission staff, 1900-1947 (19' 8") |
| F/2/vol.1-5 | Fiji District correspondence (with Governor and Government Departments), 1900-1945 (20") |
The judgements of the Fiji Court of Appeal, 1949-1996, were also
microfilmed in Suva last March. The Fiji Court of Appeal was
established in 1949 as the highest court of appeal, short of the
Privy Council, for Fiji and the Western Pacific High Commission
jurisdiction. After the dissolution of the WPHC, the Fiji Court
of Appeal continued to sit as the appeal court for Kiribati and
Tuvalu. Prior to 1949 appeals from the Supreme Court of Fiji were
taken to the Privy Council. Appeals from the Fiji Court of Appeal
to the Privy Council were still possible after 1949, until the
coups, when that right was abolished.
Under the direction of Judge Michael Scott a complete set of judgements Fiji Court of Appeal was compiled and indexed in 1991/92, with the help of a grant from the Asia Foundation. The judgements were photocopied from informal compilations and from original case files. Three sets of the photocopied judgements were made, each set comprising 22 thick volumes, amounting to almost 13,000 A4 pages. One set is held in the Office of the Chief Justice, one in the Supreme Court Library and another in the Court in Lautoka.
The USP's Law School at Port Vila was
keen to access the judgements and the Bureau was happy to
microfilm them, building on its recent work in the Supreme Court
of Tonga. Judge Scott, who strongly supported the microfilming,
was willing to have them shipped to Australia for copying, a few
volumes at a time. However, as there was a long weekend during my
visit to Suva, he agreed to allow me to take the full set from
the Supreme Court Library to the ANU Flats at Laucala Bay over
the weekend. They were microfilmed with the help of a local
student using the mask at half frame; the first time that the
Bureau has used this technique in recent years, enabling up to
1,200 frames/reel. The details are as follows:
| PMB 1137 | FIJI COURT OF APPEAL: judgements, 1949-1996; together with Privy Council judgements relating to Fiji cases, 1936-1986. Reels 1-12. (Available for reference.) |
Ewan Maidment
PMB Executive Officer
During mid April-May 1998, I worked at the Pacific Manuscripts Bureau, arranging, describing and preparing for microfilming, the records of Sir Albert Maori Kiki. Kiki's papers give an interesting insight into Kiki as a political identity as well as an insight into pre-independence Papua and New Guinea.
Treasured by Lady Kiki, who kindly allowed the Bureau to make the microfilm copy, these personal papers are key records of PNG's independence. They document the formation and activities of the Kerema Welfare Society, one of the first of the broad based workers' associations which proliferated in the pre-independence period; and the formation of the PANGU Pati, which won control of the first independent government, including drafts of its constitution and the party platform, minutes of meetings, correspondence and press releases.
The Kiki Papers include Sir Maori's correspondence with his mentors, Albert Speer and Rev Dewdney, his critic Michael Leahy, his supporters Maslyn Williams, Cecil Abel (later Sir Cecil Abel) and George David, and his colleagues Paulus Arek, Somu Sigob and others connected with PANGU activities. Different issues are raised in the correspondence, from independence in Papua and New Guinea to race relations in Auckland and Africa.
One letter from Cecil Abel to Kiki dated 5 April 1967 emphasises the importance of preserving records and archives, and would bring a smile to the lips of any archivist. Another dated 21 March 1967 outlines meetings between Abel and influential bureaucrats in Canberra. These letters also deal with the formation of the PANGU Pati and record the period leading up to independence. Abel was a thoughtful correspondent; his letters to Kiki outline his movements and meetings while based in Canberra. He encouraged Kiki and other Papua New Guineans to maintain their enthusiasm in creating a political party. It is clear from his letters that he was aware of the significance of the PANGU Pati as a political entity in Papua and New Guinea.
According to his letters, Cecil Abel spent time in Canberra and Melbourne in early-mid 1967 meeting with influential people (in today's language, "moving and shaking"). He met Peter Hastings, Justice John Kerr, Sir James Plimsoll of the Department of External Affairs, and Professors Davidson and Beddie.
His letters offer us a glimpse into an important event in the history of Papua New Guinea -the formation of the Pangu Pati. They also reveal him as someone who placed importance on good records keeping. In researching material for a book about his father he declares that reading the relevant files is "...like living with and hearing the dead speak again. I never realised before how important are the archives and records of a country. This is all part of government. The thought has struck me have we got good public servants being trained to look after these things and to make sure that these are preserved for our future government and not removed to Australia when Independence comes...".
Imagine the excitement of a couple of archivists upon coming across that paragraph! It would be interesting to know what became of the rest of Sir Cecil Abel's correspondence, given his thoughtful, meticulous manner. Perhaps some one can enlighten us?
Patricia Jackson
Kiribati
21 May 1998
In the course of my PhD programme in anthropology, RSPAS, I have found four archival centres to be particularly helpful to my research. Apart from the extensive collection of Vanuatu archives maintained by the PMB, these include the National Archives of Vanuatu, the Mitchell Library, the Presbyterian Theological College in Sydney and the Noel Butlin Archive Centre. The materials that I have obtained during this research relate mostly to Efate, Port Vila and Pango, corresponding to my research interests on employment, kastom, nation-state formation and urbanisation in Pango village, a peri-urban community in Vanuatu. However, these archival centres also contain a wealth of information pertaining to other islands, regions and topics of interest concerning Vanuatu.
I carried out research in the National Archives of Vanuatu while I was on fieldwork in Pango from July 1995 - June 1997. The archivist, Mr Willie Toa and the staff, Chantal Tariodo and Tom Sakias, were extremely helpful in assisting me with my research and locating documents relating to Pango. All these documents had been filed and indexed under the category BD1 which refer to the British District Agency Central District Number 1 (Efate). These documents date from the mid 1970s and include land issues, disputes and resolutions, district agent reports and correspondence, political developments, genealogies and proceedings and judgements of the Joint Court. One of the most interesting series of documents that I obtained was that titled "Ethnological Research" (File No BD1/341/1 Ethnological Research Box 6). These archives detail the kind of research that was carried out in Vanuatu in the early 1970s and also contain a number of extracts from various ethnographies written in the 1960s on topics such as land tenure, kinship, power and colonial administration in such contexts.
I was unable to obtain files from the British District Agency Central District Number 1 prior to the 1970s. I was informed that this earlier material had already been transferred back to the United Kingdom before independence. However, one of the main advantages of the archives in Vila is that there is no thirty year access limit. The archives from the 1970s are readily available. When I was in Vanuatu, the National Archives charged expatriate researchers a once-only fee of 1000 vatu or $12.00 to work in the archives. The staff will photocopy documents for 50 vatu (60 cents) for a one-side page, or 30 vatu (35 cents) for a double sided page.
Archival records in Vanuatu are also located in the Supreme Court (formerly the Joint Court), the Ministry of Lands, the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Parliamentary Library, the Vanuatu National Library, the Civil Status Department, the Immigration Department and the National Statistics Office. Not all of these records are indexed or catalogued. It is important to note that there are many archival records in Vanuatu, but they are not all kept in one central location. However, this is mainly an issue of space (housing the archival material) rather than organisation. The staff at the National Archives are very helpful and offer every assistance to the researcher. If they do not have what you are looking for they can usually point you in the right direction of a government department, organisation or NGO that might have the relevant documents. They also know the relevant staff who manage archival records in other government departments and can put you in touch with these people. The National Archives of Vanuatu are well organised and offer good service under the present conditions. I am grateful to the staff at the National Archives of Vanuatu for their assistance and interest in my research project and their ability to find records which have been of immense value to my PhD thesis.
The second archive which I have found useful has been the Mitchell Library in Sydney. In January of this year the Rev Dr Graham Miller (author of the Live series documenting the history of the Presbyterian Church in Vanuatu) informed me that material relating to the Rev Dr James Cosh is held in the Mitchell Library. James Cosh was the first resident European missionary to be based in Pango from 1866-1872. Correspondence from James Cosh and his wife Janet Cosh to their respective brothers and sisters is available on microfilm at the Mitchell Library. I copied 129 pages of this correspondence of which there is approximately 200 pages relating to Vanuatu. These letters describe the voyage out from Scotland to Australia and Vanuatu, indigenous housing, trips to the periodic synod meetings on Aneityum, disease, references to the 'chief' of Pango at that time and interactions with labour traders. This correspondence is kept in the Mitchell Library on CY Reel 779 at call number ML MSS 1484 Frame Number 1-191 under the title "1. COSH, Rev. James Letters to his brother Stephen, 1866-1876, with related material, 1883-c, 1967". I appreciate the Rev Dr Graham Miller's enthusiastic assistance in pointing out the location of these documents.
I am also grateful to the Rev Dr Graham Miller for making available his primary source materials that he used to write his Live history of the Presbyterian Church in Vanuatu. These are located and are fully indexed and catalogued in the library of the Presbyterian Theological College of New South Wales in Burwood, Sydney (77 Shaftesbury Road, Burwood, NSW 2134, Telephone 02 9744 1977 and Fax 02 9744 5970). These include mission reports, correspondence, newspaper clippings, government reports and miscellaneous historical material. One of the most interesting documents I found in these papers, under file No. 19 miscellaneous papers, was a report entitled Health Survey of the New Hebrides with Special Reference to Hookworm Disease. This was written in 1926 by S.M. Lambert for the Western Pacific High Commission and recommended the training of indigenous doctors and increasing the number of places for ni-Vanuatu students at the Fiji Medical School as a means of reversing population decline in Melanesia. The librarian at the Presbyterian Theological College, Mrs Catherine Halsall, is extremely helpful to visiting researchers and I greatly appreciate her assistance in helping me locate this information.
As discussed in the December 1997 newsletter, Burns Philp has transferred most of its remaining archives to the Noel Butlin Archive Centre. I have found that the Burns Philp documents already kept in NBAC that contain fascinating information about the company's operations in the New Hebrides. Most of what I have obtained relates to the 1970s and these documents detail Burns Philps' observations of, and role in, the country's transition to independence. Official correspondence and internal documentation is also concerned with matters of race, ethnicity, the condominium administration, labour policies and land interests. The NBAC acquisition of the remainder of the Burns Philp archives will be of immense value to other researchers who wish to consult these extensive documents. I appreciate the assistance of the Acting Archives Officer of the NBAC, Emma Jolley and her staff in helping me trace the relevant Burns Philp records.
The archival research which have I conducted both in Australia and Vanuatu shows that the rich and varied documentation relating to the country is not situated in any one location, but is spread across a number of different institutions. There is also extensive Vanuatu archives in New Caledonia, France, Scotland, New Zealand, England and the United States. I have not had the opportunity to consult any of this additional material, but its relative abundance, even if dispersed, suggests that it would make fascinating future archival research for any student interested in Vanuatu studies.
Greg Rawlings
PhD Candidate
Department of Anthropology
DSE, RSPAS, ANU
This collection created by Sir John Gunther relates primarily to his work in the administration and development of Papua New Guinea and Bougainville, particularly its educational institutions. They were donated to the Department of Pacific and South East Asian History, Australian National University, by Sir John in 1981. In the absence of a University Archives they were then transferred to the Noel Butlin Archive Centre in 1982 for professional care and supervision. A descriptive catalogue has been compiled by the Department and is available at the Archives.
The papers cover the period, 1950 to 1975, during which Dr Gunther was the Director of Public Health (Papua and New Guinea), the Assistant Administrator of Papua & New Guinea, the Vice Chancellor of the University of Papua and New Guinea and the Director of the Bougainville Copper Ltd.
The papers are arranged according to subject areas. The main categories are:
These papers were already classified prior to their donation to the Department and consequently have been left in their original arrangement. Access is restricted and interested parties should approach the Noel Butlin Archive Centre who will organise access approval on their behalf.
This collection is complimented by other collections held at the Archives including, the papers of Brigadier Evan Wisdom, former administrator of the Territory of New Guinea (P66). It is planned to transfer this collection to the Australian National University Archives which is now in the process of being formed.
Emma Jolley
Archives Officer
Australian National University
Records of the Burns Philp & Co were first transferred to the Noel Butlin Archives Centre in 1990 from the Fisher Library of the University of Sydney. When archivists at the NBAC finished the arrangement and description of the collection, it resulted in 111 linear shelf metres and became known to researchers as Deposit N115. The rest of the company archives were kept in the basement of the Head Office building at 7 Bridge Street, Sydney. In late 1997 as a consequence of the company's decision to sell the building, it was decided to transfer the rest of the records to the Noel Butlin Archives Centre. Between November 1997 and March 1998 the Centre received 565 cartons and 146 bundles of records resulting in approximately 276 linear meters. The processing of the new collection is currently under way; the records will not be available for researchers until after the processing is complete.
For more than 100 years Burns Philp & Co ranked among the largest and the wealthiest companies in Australia. Incorporated in 1883, the company made its first move into the Pacific in 1886, when a mail steamer started its run between Thursday Island and Port Moresby. These activities resulted in establishing the Port Moresby Branch in 1890 which started the expansion of the company into the Pacific region.
The first collection of Burns Philp & Co at the Noel Butlin Archives Centre already holds a substantial amount of records concerning company's operations in the Pacific. The first significant group is comprised of records originating in the Head Office: subject files of the Island and Island Agencies Departments and records of the South Sea/Pacific Area Department. The latter administered Pacific subsidiaries such as Burns Philp (South Sea) Co which was set up in 1920 to manage operations in the Pacific outside the control of the Commonwealth. Although it was registered in Suva, Burns Philp (South Sea) Co was largely managed from the South Sea Department in the Sydney Office. The main series of records include copies of Burns Philp (South Sea) Co minutes (1974-1980), subject files relating to all aspects of the company operations in the Pacific covering 1960's-1970's. Records of the South Sea/Pacific Area Department also include correspondence and subject files relating to other subsidiaries in the region, such as Burns Philp (New Hebrides) Ltd, Burns Philp (Norfolk Island) Ltd and others.
Another substantial group of Pacific material includes records of the subsidiaries themselves: Burns Philp (South Sea) Co, Burns Philp (New Guinea) Ltd, Burns Philp (New Hebrides) to name the largest. Among Burns Philp (South Sea) Co records of most importance are the series of branch manager's reports and branch inspection reports spanning 1920-1972. This series offer interesting insights into the company's policies and activities in the region during the bulk of the 20th century.
The new deposit received in 1997-1998 in some ways continues the series of N115. It should be noted from the start that the bulk of the records are dated from the 1970s to early 1990s. Thus, the Pacific Sector operational files continue the series of files of the South Sea/Pacific Area Department only indicating changes in the company's general structure. Pacific Sector files were mostly created in 1980's-1990's and cover every aspect of operations of Burns Philp's Pacific subsidiaries in Fiji, Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu and other locations. These records document the process of restructuring of the company's Pacific interests, re-evaluation of its policies and priorities and gradual withdrawal from the region in late 1980's - early 1990's. Because of the recent nature of these materials information contained there must be considered as sensitive and will be closed for general research for a period determined according to the normal archival practice. There is no doubt, however, that these records will provide invaluable information for future researchers of the Pacific region and are well worth waiting for.
As a parent company Burns Philp was required to keep copies of vital records of subsidiaries such as share registers and board minutes. Thus NBAC received share registers of Burns Philp (South Sea) Co and its board minutes for 1926-1991, as well as board minutes of Burns Philp (New Guinea) Ltd for 1946-1983.
Records of subsidiaries are also represented by Burns Philp (South Sea) Co subject files of 1930's-1960's, inspection reports on Suva branch for 1913-1919 - a valuable addition to the existing series which starts only from 1920, a small run of managers reports which may also complement the existing series for certain branches. Another subsidiary which can boast a comprehensive coverage in records is Burns Philp (New Guinea) Ltd. A special value to its records is added by the extensive amount of photographs of various PNG locations mainly in 1960's-1980's. In fact, there are quite a lot of photographs in the new deposit, including some photos of unidentified Pacific locations which date back to the early 1900's.
Burns Philp & Co was always proud of its long history and most of its high officials were very concerned about preserving any record of public appreciation of its history such as newspaper articles, booklets, etc. Thanks to this and especially due to the long time collecting activities by the company former archivist, Joan Humphreys, the new deposit contains various historical material including news clippings, research notes on early history of Pacific islands, reminiscences of employees, old photos and drawings.
This report is a result of only a preliminary and hasty overview of what promises to become one of the largest and most interesting collections among the holdings of the Noel Butlin Archives Centre -- offering excitement to researchers from all backgrounds.
Tatiana Antsoupova
Archivist, Noel Butlin Archives Centre
Australian National University
Pandemonium or Paradise? Kath and Bob Paul in the New Hebrides 1946-1980 is pretty much self-explanatory. explains what the book is about. It is based almost totally on the Pauls' oral accounts which I began recording about ten years ago. Hence the 'As told to' tag above my name on the title page. I also used many of the Pauls' personal papers in my background research, plus my own knowledge. I had known the Pauls when I was working in the New Hebrides in 1965-7, first doing fieldwork for an ANU project (a sociological survey of Vila for Paula Brown and Harold Brookfield) and then as Assistant to the French and British Directors of Census for the taking of the first full population census of the New Hebrides. Maybe it was because we were all Australians, but we became friends then and maintained contact since despite my having been thousands of miles from the Pacific and from academia for the next 20 years.
On return to Australia I decided that the story of their amazing lives and their extraordinary achievements should be documented for posterity. Already the colonial period has been pushed into the past and the lives of independent expatriates who spent many years in the group during that time risk being overlooked. 'Pandemonium or Paradise?' is an attempt to ensure that some record of such enterprising existences be preserved.
Copies can be obtained from: Crawford House Publishing Pty Ltd, P.O. Box 1484, Bathurst NSW 2795; (Tel. (020 6332 2677; Fax (02) 6332 2654) @ $24.95 plus postage.
Marney Dunn
Brisbane
21 May 1998
In September 1988, a Seminar on Government Publications and Collection Development in the South Pacific Area was held in Canberra. It was organised jointly by the International Federation of Library Associations Section on Government Information and Official Publications and the Committee on Pacific Resource Materials Acquisition. The papers are now ready for distribution.
Copies of the papers are being sent to each of the participants in the South Pacific area to the address which was current at the time. Several people may have moved to another library, and may thus miss out. If this is the case, contact Mr Rob Brian, Parliamentary Librarian, Parliament House, Macquarie St, Sydney, NSW, 2000 to request a copy. You can also email him at lbrian@ph.nsw.gov.au
For non-participants, the cost of the papers is AU$20, including postage and handling. Cheques should be made payable to: The Legislature, and be sent to Rob Brian at the above address.
Ann E. Miller, Government
Publications Librarian
Borchardt Library, La Trobe University
Bundoora, 3083 AUSTRALIA
E-mail: A.Miller@latrobe.edu.au
The following PMB Manuscript Series
and Printed Document Series titles were distributed to
members in April 1998. The release amounted to 115 reels. Please
contact the Bureau for detailed reel lists.
| PMB 1076 | DAVIES, Roy, 1921-81: "Marching Rule": a personal memoir, c. 1970-80, concerning the Masina Rule Movement, 1944-47. (Available for reference.) | PMB 1077 | MAUDE, H. E. (Henry Evans), 1906-: Papers relating to the Gilbert Islands, 1942-70. (Available for reference.) |
| PMB 1091 | ZEITLER, Adolphus: business and family papers re activities in the New Hebrides, 1899-1935. (Available for reference.) | PMB 1096 | HARKNESS, Sister Effie: excerpts from her diaries relating to her service with the Methodist Overseas Mission in the Solomon Islands, 15 Jul 1941-7 May 1957. (Available for reference.) |
| PMB 1097 | METHODIST CHURCH OF NEW ZEALAND, METHODIST OVERSEAS MISSION: Foreign Mission Executive minute books, 8 Jan 1925-15 Dec 1931. (Available for reference.) | PMB 1098 | Sister Ada Lee: diaries, 1934-1966. (Available for reference.) |
| PMB 1099 | Rev. Clarence T J Luxton: diaries, correspondence and related papers, 1945-1947. (Available for reference.) | PMB 1100 | Joseph Alele: diaries (English translation from Roviana original), Oct 1940-Mar 1943. (Available for reference.) |
| PMB 1101 | Rev. A A Bensley: diary (original and typescript), May 1926-Dec 1934. (Available for reference.) | PMB 1102 | Job Tozaka: diaries (photocopy of Roviana originals and English translations), Jun 1925, Feb 1936, Apr 1937, Mar-Sep 1942, Jan-Mar 1946, May-Dec 1950. (Available for reference.) |
| PMB 1103 | Daniel Ringi: diaries (photocopy of Roviana original and English translation), 1951-1956 (irreg.) (Available for reference.) | PMB 1104 | David Voeta: diary (Roviana original and English translation), May 1935-Jan 1936. (Available for reference.) |
| PMB 1105 | John Kevisi (?): diary (photocopy of Roviana original, Jan-Apr 1937. (Available for reference.) | PMB 1106 | Sister Merle Farland: diary (photocopy of original) and index, Dec 1938-Mar 1940, Nov 1941-Feb 1943, together with correspondence, press cuttings and other documents, 1942-1978, including, Rev. J R Metcalfe, "The Gizo Scuttle". (Available for reference.) |
| PMB 1107 | Sister Merle Carter: diaries (originals and typescripts) and correspondence, 1946-1950. (Available for reference.) | PMB 1108 | Rev. Vincent Binet: correspondence with the government, 1926-1931 and with Dr Clifford James on clothes, 1931. (Available for reference.) |
| PMB 1109 | Ishmael Ngatu: diaries (English translations and some originals), 1927-1954. (Available for reference.) | PMB 1110 | Methodist Church of New Zealand, Methodist Overseas Mission Board: minutes, Dec 1955-Nov 1972. (Available for reference.) |
| PMB 1111 | Methodist Church of New Zealand, Methodist Overseas Mission, Solomon Islands Mission: Chairman's correspondence, 1952-1961, indexed. (Available for reference.) | PMB 1112 | W R Carpenter & Co Ltd, Tulagi Branch: Branch Manager's correspondence and related papers, 1925-1932. (Available for reference.) |
| PMB 1114 | Simpson, Rev. Thomas Nevison and Mrs Nellie: correspondence and other papers related to their service with the Methodist Overseas Mission, New Hanover, PNG, 1936-1942. (Restricted access.) | PMB 1115 | Land and Titles Court, Western Samoa: documents relating to Tama'aiga titles disputes - Tuimaleali'ifano title. (Closed.) |
| PMB 1116 | Papua New Guinea National Fisheries Authority, Kanudi Research Station Library: PNG Collection - research papers, P1-P360. (Available for reference.) | PMB 1117 | Papua New Guinea Trades Union Congress: archives, 1969-1995. (Available for reference.) |
| PMB 1118 | Papua New Guinea National Fisheries Authority, Research Branch: miscellaneous research archives, 1948-1978. (Available for reference.) | PMB 1120 | Catholic Archdiocese of Honiara: archives, 1905-1982. (Available for reference.) |
| PMB 1121 | Levers Pacific Plantations Pty Ltd/Lever Solomons Ltd: archives, 1902-1992. (Available for reference.) | PMB 1123 | GRAY, Rev. William: press cuttings, pamphlets and articles on Kanaka labour traffic and missionary life in the New Hebrides (Available for reference.) |
| PMB 1124 | Latukefu, Dr Sione: collected Tongan papers, 1884-1965. (Available for reference.) | PMB 1125 | FAK-AO TINAPUA MATA, Dick. Two texts in a language of Tongoa Island in the Shepherd Islands group, Vanuatu: Natulakeana ni nawasiana ni tuai [The beginning of work long ago], and Ranginatulatean waina teatere eru umai [In the beginning when white people first came], 1944. (Available for reference.) |
| PMB 1126 | FERGUSON, J. A. Bibliography of the New Hebrides Islands, 1610-1942. (Available for reference.) | PMB 1127 | J. W. MANSFIELD & CO (traders, Vila, New Hebrides). Ledger, 1903-1913. (Available for reference.) |
| PMB 1128 | NATIONAL LIBRARY OF VANUATU. Miscellaneous papers: photographs of the Presbyterian mision at West Ambrym, 1913; Final Report on Tropical Cyclone Uma, 1987; Tavue: a collection of short stories from East Aoba, n.d.; Autobiography of Chief Silas Nari Leo Bulr of Labultamata, North Pentecost, 1984. (Available for reference.) | PMB 1129 | WESTERN PACIFIC ARCHIVES. Lists of archives of the New Hebrides British service and related records, 1979. (Available for reference.) |
| PMB 1130 | ETABLISSEMENTS BALLANDE (traders, Port Vila and Santo, New Hebrides). Agendas (business diaries), 1933-1942, 1950-1954. (Restricted access.) | PMB 1131 | USSHER, J., (planter, Nguna, New Hebrides). Business correspondence, 1915-1919, accounts and wages books, 1935-1943. (Restricted access.) |
| PMB 1132 | GENEALOGIES OF THE SHEPHERD ISLANDS, VANUATU (by island, village and family), 1930s. (Restricted access.) | PMB 1133 | NEW HEBRIDES BRITISH SERVICE, Southern District Administration. Files on the John Frum Movement, Tanna, 1947-1956. (Restricted access.) |
| PMB 1134 | MICHOUTOUCHKINE, Nicolaï (Artist and collector, Vila, Vanuatu). Travel journals, Sep 1953-Jan 1956. (Available for reference.) | PMB 1135 | NEW HEBRIDES FRENCH RESIDENCY: monthly reports, Dec 1966-Dec 1978. (Available for reference.) |
| PMB 1136 | BANABA: documents gathered by Ken Sigrah and papers of Dr Ron Lampert on his archaeological excavation at Te Aka, 1965. (Available for reference.) | PMB Doc 415 | The Solomons News Drum (Honiara), Nos 1-66, 68-171, 173-360, 362, Oct 1974, Feb 1975-Apr 1982 |
| PMB Doc 416 | Melanesian Nius/The Kiokio Nius, Nos.1-10, Jan-Mar 1977 | PMB Doc 417 | Etude sur les societes aux Nouvelles Hebrides, by Corbin de Mangoux (Banque de Indochine), 1930. (Available for reference.) |
| PMB Doc 418 | Fiji Voice (Fiji Independent News Service, Sydney), Nos. 1-24, Sep 1987-Dec 1992. (Available for reference.) | PMB Doc 419 | Fiji Situation Report (Fiji Independent News Service, Sydney), Oct 1987-Nov 1990. (Available for reference.) |
| PMB Doc 423 | Na Turupatu na Lotu Katolika (Catholic Mission, Solomon Islands. Mainly in the Gari language of Guadalcanal.) Nos.1, 3-143, 145-186, 188-198, 1911-1958, and Nos.1,3-5, 1970-1971. (Available for reference.) | PMB Doc 425 | Bulletin of the New Hebrides Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture / Bulletin of the Vanuatu Chamber of Commerce (Port Vila), 1976-1986. (Available for reference.) |
| PMB Doc 426 | Women's Club News (New Hebrides), Mar 1971-Jun 1980. (Available for reference.) | PMB Doc 427 | Vanua Scope (ed. Patrick Antoine Delcoitre, Port Vila, Vanuatu), Mar 1993-Jan 1994. (Available for reference.) |
| PMB Doc 428 | Naika (Journal of the Vanuatu Natural Science Society), Nos 1-42, 1981-1993. (Available for reference.) | PMB Doc 429 | Solomon Star (Honiara), 1982-1987. (Available for reference.) |
| PMB Doc 430 | SOLOMON ISLANDS POLITICAL PARTY MANIFESTOS, POLICY STATEMENTS AND PROGRAMMES OF ACTION collected by Dr Ian Frazer, 1980-1993. (Available for reference.) | PMB Doc 431 | METCALF, Peter Allan, Port Moresby's Papuan Workers and their Association, MA thesis, University of Auckland, Department of Anthroplogy, 1968. (Available for reference.) |
| PMB Doc 432 | BOUGAINVILLE TRANSITIONAL & PAPUA NEW GUINEA GOVERNMENT NEWSLETTERS and related papers re the Bougainville crisis, 1992-1995, 1997. (Available for reference.) | Unrestricted titles are available for purchase from the Bureau. Microfilm prices are as follows: |
|