These three letters were published in the Sydney Morning Herald today, all opposing this proposed merger, they are in response to an article in the SMH yesterday about this issue
Historic mistake
It is ‘‘just nuts’’ to amalgamate archives (‘‘Historian bemoans plan to amalgamate archives’’, July 28). The Historic Houses Trust resulted from my restoration of Elizabeth Bay House in the early 1970s for the NSW government. The government had a number of historic houses which had been acquired and were all managed by different departments. I convinced the government to bring them under one department and treat them equally.
With the help of the National Trust, it was called the Historic Houses Trust of NSW. It thrived and eventually controlled other buildings that were historic, although not necessarily houses.
I cannot understand how anyone could think they should be linked with State Archives and Records Authority. They have different charters and clearly should be separate.
Clive Lucas, Neutral Bay
The state government’s plan to merge the State Archives with other institutions seems irrational and doctrinaire. It is simply an anomaly that the Arts Minister is responsible because such historical and administrative records are not the arts. Support from the Opera House and the Art Gallery of NSW is irrelevant: they are arts institutions that engage in the different activities of performances and exhibitions.
Mention of the National Archives hardly strengthens the government’s case. The collection, maintenance and use of archives are critically important for understanding our past. Archives are used by historians and their activities are scholarly, not artistic.
John Carmody, Roseville
The proposal for the merger of Sydney Living Museums and State Archives and Records is as nonsensical as the proposed move of the Powerhouse. It makes no logical sense and is another example of ill-considered policy on the run. Anyone with any depth of knowledge and understanding of the two organisations appears to oppose it. One wonders where these mad ideas come from and why they get traction.
Peter Watts, Lilyfield
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