Without doubt, the NT Archive is undersubscribed. There is a wealth of information held by departments, schools, businesses, organisations and individual people on all sorts of matters dating back for decades. Yet little it seems, is ever transferred to what should be the central repository of our history, the Northern Territory Archive.

I wonder how much rich historical material finds its way into un-airconditioned sheds, musty backrooms, forgotten corners and, saddest of all, the rubbish tip.

From what I am hearing, very little organised activity is undertaken to transfer past records and materials to the NT Archival collection. There are some private establishments with their own archive. Included is the CDU library and the NT Newspaper. However, I suspect that many organisations find their accumulated history to be nothing less than a documentary nusiance.

I wish that we would develop an attitude toward our history that values what has gone before. Rather than discounting the past, we need to value what has gown us toward the point of Territory evolvement we have reached.

Preserving rather than discounting our history and tossing it aside, should become normative behaviour.