Northern Territory Archives Service

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Northern Territory Archives Service

• NT Archives Service (NTAS)

• State

The Northern Territory Archives Service (NTAS) preserves and manages government and community archives. The NTAS gives access to these collections at the Northern Territory Archives Centres in Darwin and Alice Springs.

The NTAS sets out and follows records management policy, standards and advice for the appraisal, disposal and management of permanent records.

In July 2013 the Northern Territory Archives Service co-located with the National Archives of Australia, Darwin office, in the Northern Territory Archives Centre in Millner.

This brought together the archival collections of both agencies, offering a shared search room and reading room.

There are Northern Territory Archives Centres in:

• Darwin at Kelsey Crescent, Millner (as above) (Phone: 08 8999 6890)
• Alice Springs at Minerals House, 58 Hartley Street, Alice Springs NT 0870 (Phone: 08 8951 5669)

The NTAS archives collection is made up of three broad categories:

• Northern Territory (NT) Government archives
• community archives
• oral history archives.

NT Government archives
The NTAS holds NT Government archives that have been created since the government's establishment in 1978.

The NTAS also holds archives created by the NT Government's predecessors.

• From 1863 to 1910, the NT was administered by the South Australian Government. Some Territory archives created during this period are now held at the NTAS while some remain in South Australia (see State Records of South Australia).
• From 1911 to 1978, the NT was administered by the Federal Government. Federal archives relating to the functions which the Commonwealth transferred to the NT Government upon self-government in 1978 are now held at the NTAS.

Community archives
The NTAS is responsible for the preservation and availability of non-government archives, which it collects from the wider Territory community. These archives are deposited by a range of individuals who have been active in the Territory, as well as, for example:

• community groups and organisations
• businesses and companies
• churches and missions
• political parties
• trade unions.

Oral history archives
A large collection of oral history archives is also available for research.
Developed by the NTAS Oral History Program, this collection includes recordings of interviews with a diverse range of people about Territory life and history.

For the online catalogue, Archives Navigator, lists of holdings, subject guides and information leaflets, see https://dtc.nt.gov.au/arts-and-museums/northern-territory-archives-service/about-ntas

Darwin reading room: open Tuesday to Friday 9am-4.30pm, closed Mondays and public holidays.
Alice Springs reading room: open Monday to Friday 9am-12pm and 1pm-4.30pm, closed public holidays.

You can access most government records 30 years after they were created.

Some records have restricted access - staff will tell you about this when you are ready to view items.

For more information about access conditions, see https://dtc.nt.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/267829/access-to-archival-records.pdf

For information about disability access, transport and parking with maps for both the Darwin and Alice Springs offices, see https://dtc.nt.gov.au/arts-and-museums/northern-territory-archives-service/nt-archives-service-contacts

Reference staff do not do detailed research. Staff can provide a list of research agents. Research agent fees may apply.

For information about researching in the Archives, including undertaking Aboriginal family research, see https://dtc.nt.gov.au/arts-and-museums/northern-territory-archives-service/informaton-for-researchers

You can order photocopies from the archives. You can also use your camera to copy material after completing a copyright declaration.

For further information, see https://dtc.nt.gov.au/arts-and-museums/northern-territory-archives-service/informaton-for-researchers/researching-the-archives