Tracking back to two weeks ago when we went to the public records office. This was definitely a place I didn’t knew existed. So it was interesting to find out what they had there and what kind of people go there as well. They have kilometres of records, from public building plans to court cases. I would find it hard to decide what to keep and when to throw it away. Of course their space is limited however you never know when that information is useful again. They wrote this on a blog post on their website about the key reasons why they should keep the records:

•  preserve evidence of past decisions and actions;
• support transparency, openness and accountability in government;
• preserve the documented memory of government and its citizens;
• support research by providing documentary evidence for academic and research communities and the general public;
• support individuals and communities to reconnect and preserve identity and memory and facilitate redress, recovery and reconciliation

“Ned Kelly, from a prison photograph taken when he was 18. Composite image from VPRS 515P Central Register of Male Prisoners”

The most interesting part of definitely the court cases from the supreme court that they had records of, they even had evidence for some, such as pleas, poison even bullets. Some of these cases was something I was going to look into more for the upcoming semester crits.

Link to photo: http://prov.vic.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/ned-kelly