Is there some history hiding in your closet?

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There's a new agency that will help increase the preservation of Canada's Aboriginal culture.

The Special Interest Section on Aboriginal Archives is an arm of the Association of Canadian Archivists and will be available to help communities or organizations set up their own historical archives.

All too often, photographs, documents and stories are misplaced or lost and the memories of families or cultures are left with gaping holes. The Aboriginal archives is available to train people about where to look for historical documents which may be scattered throughout their communities.

Trish Maracle, the chairperson of the interim steering committee for the new agency, hopes that with proper training and education, Native communities will be able to organize their own archives where they can store their own historical data.

Proper storage of archival material is essential for cultures to preserve their history, she said.

It is hopefully going to raise awareness that there may be some things in the back of the closet which could be on display, Maracle said.

"Many people may have photos or documents . . . and unless these things are preserved, they may be lost in the long run."

Through advice and information, the Aboriginal archives group wants to let Aboriginal people handle their own history.

Maracle is also hoping that the news of this new agency might increase the amount of historical artifacts in communities. If people know their photographs or documents can be displayed somewhere that they are comfortable with, then maybe people will be more willing to part with these items, she said.

Jim Bruce, the director of library and information services at the Saskatchewan Indian Cultural Centre, is pleased to hear about the emphasis on Aboriginal archival collections.

There is a need for Aboriginal artifacts to be collected from within communities and preserved properly, he said.

"If you don't pay attention to this preservation, this stuff is going to be gone," said Bruce. "In some bands, there are literally trailers full with loads of historical documents." These documents need the proper place to be preserved for future generations.

Old documents, papers and photographs are resource tools which people can use to increase community pride, trace the movements of ancestors and educate the youth. Unfortunately, since there, previously, has been little available assistance to band-level communities to preserve these artifacts, "there's been years of neglect and years of drift and there has been a loss of some of these resources," Bruce said.

One of the big benefits to this new program is the more personal perspective that the artifact stories will take, he said.

Most historical books are written and researched by non-Native people. To get the real story, he said archives need to go straight to the source. The new agency looks like it is trying to do that, he said.

Bruce said he is hopeful that Native community members will use the resources of the Aboriginal archives group to learn more about their own history.

"You have got to raise awareness toward the value of [preservation]," he said.

Collections of archival material is not only good for a community in the way of pride, it could also bolster a tourism economy or help community members trace back their ancestry.

The Aboriginal archives organizers are hoping to raise more awareness toward their plans at a May 27 Association of Canadian Archivists conference being held in Dartmouth, N.S. One afternoon of the three-day conference has been set aside to discuss the new agency and how it is going to work.

Maracle said she would like to eventually see the group have membership across Canada. Then, in each province, people who have been trained could assist their communities in setting up their own archives.

These community collections deserve to be created, maintained and showcased close to home, she said.

"It's people's memories and their history," she said.

The cration of the new agency was brought about from recommendations within the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples report. Members of the Association of Canadian Archivists have also been looking at access and availability of Aboriginal archival material for a number of years. The association expects the new agency to assist them in learning how to work with Aboriginal communities to uncover record-keeping needs, provide training and management, and increase the accessibility of records in established archives.

Interested groups are asked to contact the Special Interest Section on Aboriginal Archives at their Ottawa office at (613) 947-0759, or through their e-mail address at SISAA@archives.ca.