Library and Archives Canada
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Library and Archives Canada (in French: Bibliothèque et Archives Canada) is a cultural institution created by the Parliament of Canada in 2004 (S.C. 2004, c.11). Located in Ottawa, Ontario, its director with the rank of deputy head of a department is known as the Librarian and Archivist of Canada. The first holder of this title is the former National archivist Ian E. Wilson.
It merged the Public Archives of Canada founded in 1872 and the National Library of Canada founded in 1953. Its purpose is to collect and preserve the documentary heritage of Canada through texts, pictures and other documents relevant to the culture of Canada and the politics of Canada. Archival and library material are acquired from government departments, national groups or organizations, private donors, and legal deposit. The maximum fine for not obeying legal deposit is defined by Section 735 of the Canadian Criminal Code as $100,000.
The building of Library and Archives Canada was opened on June 20, 1967 by Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson with 400,000 volumes of information which has grown to over 18,000,000. After the merger there are now slightly more than 1,100 employees in the Library and Archives.
The official entrance and the public services are located in Ottawa, Ontario at 395 Wellington Street, near other significant buildings such as Parliament Hill, the Supreme Court of Canada and others. Located at the front of the building is a sculpture named The Secret Bench of Knowledge by Lea Vivot. The building has five floors and covers 52,600 square metres. It was built for a cost of $13,000,000.
The administrative units, including the sections responsible for acquisitions (gifts, purchases, and legal deposit), cataloguing, ISBN numbering, conservation and other matters, have long ago overflowed from the main building to several other venues on or around Wellington Street. Starting in autumn 2004 the 600 or 700 employees in these units have been gradually consolidated in a building in Gatineau, Quebec across the road from the Gatineau Preservation Centre.
The Gatineau Preservation Centre ("GPC") opened on June 4, 1997 after years of planning. It is a massive hangar-like building with external glass walls and opaque internal cement walls housing specially constructed preservation vaults for some of the most fragile documents of the Archives. It has three stories of windowless vaults with a top story for preservation laboratories and offices. The Gatineau Preservation Centre is located at 625, boulevard du Carrefour, about 12 km north-east of downtown Ottawa, in Gatineau, Quebec.
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[edit] Former National Archivists
- 1872–1902 Douglas Brymner (1823–1902)
- 1904–1935 Sir Arthur George Doughty (1860–1936) (A statue of Doughty is located on the north side of the Library and Archives building.)
- 1937–1948 Gustave Lanctot
- 1948–1968 William Kaye Lamb (1904–1999)
- Wlfrid I. Smith (1919–1998)
- 1985–1997 Jean-Pierre Wallot
- 1997–2004 Ian E. Wilson
[edit] Former National Librarians
- 1953–1967 William Kaye Lamb (1904–1999)
- 1968–1983 Guy Sylvestre (1918– )
- 1984–1999 Marianne Scott
- 1999–2004 Roch Carrier
[edit] Related legislation
- Library and Archives of Canada Act[1]
- National Archives of Canada Act (repealed)
- National Library Act (repealed)
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
[edit] Library and Archives Canada official websites
[edit] Provincial archives
- Maps and aerial photos
- WikiSatellite view at WikiMapia
- Street map from Mapquest or Google Maps
- Satellite image from Google Maps
- Topographical map from Maptech
