The first full week of April is Archives Awareness Week, and one of the highlights of this year’s celebrations will be a cluster of special activities at the Archives of Ontario.
The theme of the 2016 AO celebrations is “Out of the Box!” and, from April 4 to 9, the focus will be on AO customers and how they have used various collections in creative and innovative ways.
There will be free giveaways all week long, but the festivities will really be in high gear on Wednesday April 6, with a behind-the-scenes tour of the AO’s state-of-the-art preservation and storage areas, and an afternoon speaker series. Outreach Officer Dr. Jay Young will offer a sneak peek at the AO’s upcoming exhibit marking Canada’s 150th anniversary; Curator Jennifer Harrington and Assistant General Manager Wendy Rowney will demonstrate how Black Creek Pioneer Village is using archival materials to get visitors excited about history; and Steve Paikin, host of TV Ontario’s popular show “The Agenda”, will explain how he used AO records to write about the life of former Premier Bill Davis.
All the AO activities are free but advance registration is requested. Find out more on the AO website. And for information on other Archives Awareness Week events across the province, check out the Archives Association of Ontario calendar.
